Saber of Remnant
by Hit Rite
Summary: I dreamed of a broken world filled with despair. I received a legacy that was never mine. I was just a mundane person. But someone called out for help. So I answered. (SI-OC or Self-Insert Fiction)
1. Prologue: Summoning Fate

**I do not own RWBY or Fate universes. Also, this is my first fanfiction, so I would appreciate some polite and constructive criticism as well.**

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**Prologue: Summoning Fate**

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_It was despair._

That was the thought that came to Weiss's mind as the city of Vale plunged into chaos. Why was this happening?

She was currently at Beacon Academy with several other students. They were fighting against the Grimm and Altesian robots and for what? They have already lost the battle the moment the first Grimm landed in Vale.

A lot of people were dying. A lot of people were scared. A lot of people didn't know what to do.

_"But we still keep fighting on because it is not over yet,"_ Weiss thought determinedly to herself.

She froze the legs of an Altesian Paladin with an application of ice dust. Then a white glyph formed under her feet and she thrust forward with her Myrtenaster.

Only to be sent flying back by another Paladin. She winced in pain from the heaviness of the blow.

_"Still, fighting a losing battle was not my idea to end the night," _Weiss thought grimly as she glared at her current enemies.

The two automated Altesian Paladins had paired up after pushing them back, their red lights glaring menacingly at the students. Their situation was not good.

_"I should be fighting with my team. Where is Ruby, Blake, and Yang at this time?!" _Weiss thought. This was the worst possible time to be separated now.

_Who knows if they were alright?!_

Turning her focus back in fight, Weiss was surprised to see that the leader of CFVY, Coco, allowed her teammate Velvet to take on the approaching enemy. By herself.

"What are you doing? She's going to get hurt!" Weiss objected.

Weiss knew that they were barely even holding their own against those advanced models before. How can someone timid like Velvet turn the tide of battle in their favor, much less by herself?

"Just watch," Coco replied unconcernedly. Her tone of confidence in that statement indicated that she trusted that her teammate could pull this through, despite of the odds.

So Weiss reluctantly could only watch as Velvet walked up to the Paladins.

Velvet then held out her hand and a familiar weapon materialized in it. A sniper-scythe. More specifically, it was Ruby's beloved weapon, Crescent Rose.

No, it was just an imitation, a fake made from blue Hard-Light Dust.

The weapon didn't last long as Velvet somehow imitated Ruby's overhead spin, landing on top of the Paladin as she dodges its shots. But she had a lot more weapons up her in arsenal.

A copy of her Myrtenaster formed in her hand, and Velvet took up Weiss's stance and attacks nearly perfectly. It wasn't as the same as she had a different body structure and had no use of her glyphs, but it was eerily similar. Weiss wondered if that was her semblance as she continued watching in awe.

Velvet kept switching up her weapons and stances as she danced around the Paladins.

Jabbing the head with a cleaver. Peppering them down with machine gun bullets. Delivering a downward blow on an arm with a hammer.

Then Velvet produced her latest weapon, one copied from Penny, slicing the first Paladin's legs off and then blasting it away to oblivion. Weiss sighed in relief at her success.

But then Velvet was caught off guard by its partner with a sucker punch.

"Aah!"

Velvet was knocked away onto the ground, disoriented.

"Velvet!" Coco cried out in alarm. She and the others then rushed to land suppressing fire on the Paladin in order to draw it away from Velvet.

Weiss stares at the scene and then closes her eyes in frustration.

_They are not going to make it in time. The Paladin is still focused on Velvet. Velvet is going not to live. She is going to die. She needs help. She needs to be saved. Now!_

A white blur rushes past the others.

Weiss was propelling herself by the white glyphs that she had formed subconsciously at her feet. She may not be as fast as Ruby, but her acceleration with her glyphs was something else entirely.

_"Come on! I can save her. No, I will save her," _Weiss thought determinedly as she circled in closer to Velvet's position.

A large white Glyph suddenly appeared behind her, in an appearance of four swords revolving around a snowflake, as if it was awaiting her call. Weiss glances back at the glyph in confusion, but decides to take a chance with it.

_"Well then, I cannot fail my summoning now. I won't fail this time. Please help me!" _Weiss cried out desperately inside as she halted in front of Velvet. She then closed her eyes and raised her sword up horizontally in an attempt to block the inevitable blow from the Paladin.

In another timeline, another Weiss would have been successful in summoning the arm and sword of the Armas Gigas she fought before, where it would have destroyed the last Paladin in the end.

But in this timeline, something foreign had broken this Fate.

The glyph then suddenly flickered from its usual blue-white color to a more golden color. Then it glowed brightly and small orbs of light rose from it. Weiss felt the back of her left hand itched in pain at the same time.

And the following consequences had shifted the future of Remnant to a new, irreversible path. This Weiss had summoned something very special, yet different in the end.

_A miracle._

* * *

_Chiiiiiiiinnnnnnnng!_

Sound of colliding metal rang throughout the Beacon courtyard.

Weiss then opened one eye carefully after feeling no impact. Then she saw something.

_No, it was someone._

A blue and silver figure that appeared before her seemingly held nothing in its hands, yet it held back the arm of the Paladin with something she couldn't identify. Then the figure parried the blow away in a fearsome burst of strength, and proceeded to destroy the Paladin into a sparking heap of scrap.

_They were saved._

Weiss was exhausted from her previous actions, but still expended some effort to glance at the figure that was supposed to be her summon.

_It was not the one she was calling for, yet it was the miracle that she sought for._

The said figure was dressed in blue, with silver armor plating and greaves fitting for a knight. The figure didn't appear to be holding any weapon at first glance, yet the hands were clutching onto something she couldn't see. It appeared as though it was made from wind_._ The figure had a hood on and currently had its back toward her. But what really made the figure stand out the most was its _aura._ It was not the Aura that protects huntsmen and huntresses, but the aura of authority and power. Not unlike a _king._

While Weiss was contemplating what she had actually summoned instead, the figure turned around and paused for a bit upon meeting her eyes. She couldn't really see the figure's face, except for the eyes.

They were bright green eyes, filled with resolve. Weiss was mesmerized by them.

Then it _spoke _the words that she will never forget in her lifetime.

**_"I have answered for a call for help. So I ask of you: Are you my Master?"_**

_The night seemingly stood still upon those spoken words._

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**To my readers, this is my first time writing and I am hoping to keep up this story going. I can foresee several specific endings to this, but it is still open-ended as far as I am concerned. Please leave a review if you can and thank you for reading this. **


	2. Ch 1: Becoming An Everlasting Dream

**I do not own RWBY or Fate universes. I would appreciate some polite and constructive criticism as well in the form of reviews. Here is another chapter for today. **

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**Chapter One: Becoming An Everlasting Dream**

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_Where am I?_

That was my first coherent thought when I cracked open my eyes.

Then I blinked once. Twice.

Instead of seeing the dreary, white bedroom ceiling, what I saw was the twinkling stars of the night. I don't think I was sleeping outside. Because I never slept outside like this.

Was this a dream? If so, I wished not to want to wake up right now. The green grass tickled my bare feet, and the occasional gentle breeze swayed my hair around. The air smelled cleaner, no purer than the city air that I was used to. But most of all, I felt rather peaceful, as though nothing can go wrong like it always did in life. If there was a place that I would go after death, it would here undoubtedly.

But where was this exactly?

A gentle voice then echoed to my question.

_You are in Avalon, young one. _

I suddenly sat up straight in response. Was I hearing things?

I swerve my head around for the source of the voice. There was no one. All I saw were floating golden lights and an endless sea of green grass. But I was sure that I heard someone before.

"Where and who are you?" I asked aloud.

_I'm afraid you cannot see me right now, but I am here. My name is ******._

I winced in pain as static crackled in my head. What was that?!

_Apologizes. It may seem like you are not able to hear my True Name for now, but you may call me Saber._

The voice and the given name now connected to one of my memories in my mind. Saber? As in _the Saber?_ The one character from the Fate series? The King of the Knights, and one who wields the Excalibur, the Sword of Promised Victory? What is _she _doing here? Better yet, why am I doing here, talking to a supposedly fictional being?

_Yes, I am the Saber that you are thinking about right now and the reason that you are here is that you are needed to save a world. That is also why I am also here to assist you in your endeavors._

So not _the_ world, but _a_ world? So it was not one of the parallel versions of the Fate world. What a pity. I would love to meet heroic spirits, utilize magecraft, and witness miracles happen.

On the other hand, it was probably not the place I want to go if I valued my safety a lot. There were a lot of possible world-ending dangers and events in the Fate universe. Not to mention that there are just too many ways I could be tortured, killed, and experimented on for my own liking.

_I must say that our world is indeed very dangerous as you may think. But you are also correct to say that the world you are going to will not be my world. I believe that the name of the world that you need to save is called Remnant by its inhabitants. _

Now that caught my attention. I always wanted to see what Remnant would be like from one of my favorite shows. Not that it was any safer than the Fate universe because of all those Grimm running around. But why does it need saving? As far as I am concerned, the writers of the show would not simply leave the Remnant to eternal doom and the protagonists will eventually prevail over Salem.

_I am not quite sure what you mean by writers of the show or protagonists, but this is a serious matter nonetheless. The world of Remnant that you know of is in grave danger from an unknown alien threat. I do not know when this will happen in the future specifically, but it will occur._

Seriously?! Why does life always throw me a curveball on a Saturday night? Being kidnapped unexpectedly by someone (like Zelretch) or something (like Alaya) to save a world is not really on my agenda today. Why me, an ordinary mob in reality? I don't really think I am capable of a saving a world the way that I was now.

Saber's voice sternly answered me.

_Cease your worries. I do not know who or what summoned you here, but that is irrelevant at this point. I understand your concerns, but remember that I will be assisting you in that world. I cannot be summoned as a servant over there normally, but it does not mean I cannot help you out in another way._

Helping me out in another way instead of being summoned as a servant? How could Saber help me out then…? Unless…

Wait. There is one possible way. Then does that mean…?

_Yes. You will have full access to my abilities and powers as a Saber-class servant, but not as a demi-servant. More specifically, you will become a Saber-class servant of your own right._

Oh man. While being a Servant was not the best thing in the world, considering that you need a Master for energy and the fact that you are not much different from a ghost, it is still one of my dreams. I mean, who doesn't want to move faster than sound, flatten mountains in one blow, and unleash sword laser beams? And I have the opportunity to do so right now?

_Of course you can do so. On the sole condition that you will help save that world from its eminent doom._

That statement made me pause and question myself.

Do I have the will to do something outside my own personal experiences? Don't get me wrong. I am not a bad person in life and that I always feel compelled to help someone when I am capable in doing so. And I do admire the few people who are truly selfless and know what is the right thing to do. But I am not like them. What if I really mess up? I really don't want to make wrong mistakes that might cause other people to suffer more than if I didn't do anything.

Saber gently called out to me.

_It is okay to be afraid of what you can do because you have the power to make great change for the better or worse. But you should know that you are still capable of helping people out. Not just because you will access to my powers, but you are a person who is willing to help others in need. As the person that I loved once said, "It is not wrong to help others in need." _

_Mind that if you choose to refuse, I do not know a way to send you back to your world, so you will be living in Avalon for some time. So I ask of you. Have you made a choice?_

Damnit. Do I even have a choice to refuse here?!

But while I apparently do not really have a choice to begin with, Saber's encouraging words eventually erased my doubts of having the daunting task to save Remnant. So what if I mess up and make wrong mistakes? If I am able to save others, would I have regrets saving them? No! If I was given the opportunity to save a world, when I was resigned to a mundane life in reality, would I have regrets of taking that choice? No! I will have no regrets in taking this choice, because it is my only path that I can and will take.

I will go.

_It seems like you have finally strengthened your resolve. Very well, then. I will now transfer all of my skills, powers, and memories to your soul. It will be painful. It will be distressful. You will no longer be human, but you will become a full fledged Servant of your own right. You will become much more than you can ever imagine. Please show that world that there is still everlasting victory in the midst of eternal despair in my place. _

_I bid you good luck since I will not be able to talk to you over there. But I will be at your side nonetheless. Farewell, young hero..._

* * *

Suddenly, all of the floating, glowing gold orbs around me rushed into my body and I was then bombarded by overwhelming amount of memories and experiences of Saber's life.

_Pulling out the Sword of Selection, Caliburn. One who pulls it from the stone shall be declared the true King of Britain. Yet one who pulls the sword will never be human again._

_Excalibur, the Sword of Promised Victory. It was created by the Fae and was the crystallization of glory of mankind and their wishes, dreams, and hopes. The Last Phantasm._

_Avalon. The sheath that protects and heals. A item that is even beyond the reach of the Five True Magics. Lost in life yet returned as a Servant._

_Mana Burst. Charisma. Riding. Magic Resistance. Instinct. They were the worthy skills befitting for the King of Knights._

_Reserved. Courageous. Loyal. Prideful. Honorable. Kind. Sad. Resolved. She was a King before a Woman. But she was a Woman King all the same._

_Battles. Knights of Round Table. Merlin. Morgan. Lancelot. Mordred. Vivian. Avalon. The Kingdom of Camelot. The Holy Grail War. Corruption. Kiritsugu. Irisviel. Gilgamesh. Illya. Rin. Archer. Shirou. _

_Wishes, Regrets and Pride. Despair, Peace and Love._

_One's Fate yet waiting for Another's Arrival._

I then blacked out completely from the pain of the absorbed memories.

But not before finally seeing _her face._

_It was beautiful, yet strangely sad._

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**To my readers, I hope that you are enjoying reading my story so far. I just got this specific chapter out now, so that the initial story background feels more complete. Please leave a review if you can and thank you for reading this.**


	3. Ch 2: Character Creation

**I do not own RWBY or Fate universes. I would appreciate some polite and constructive criticism as well in the form of reviews. Here is a chapter for today. Enjoy reading.**

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**Chapter Two: Character Creation**

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I opened my eyes again, only to see a white space around me.

I stood up to observe the surrounding space. I can only see endless white color.

"I guess this is like a transition point before I get summoned, right?" I pondered.

Then I took a good look at myself.

I was wearing pretty much the same clothing style as Proto Arthur outfit, which was good for me as that not only I was a guy, but I also had a hood that hides my face pretty well. The armor is also very useful as not only it had strong magical defensive properties, I can reform it when it is battered or destroyed.

Wonder if I can remove the armor itself?

Suddenly, my armor flashed white and I was left in my blue tunic. I almost panicked right there, but I then just remembered that Saber could remove and put on her armor and weapons with a just thought. I took a breath to calm myself.

Okay, let's try it putting it on again.

Oh?! The armor flashed back on to me, good as new. This is pretty convenient. Wonder if I had any other clothing attire…?

But I have other important things to examine now, so I will hold that thought off for now.

One thing that I noticed was that I didn't hold any weapons in my hand, but I guess that I could just summon my weapon with a mere thought.

So I closed my eyes and focused into my gut, searching for the sword that Saber always carried with her.

A ripple in my soul appeared and I pulled it out.

A swirl of pressurized wind formed in my hand. It was something that Merlin created for Saber after Avalon was lost, and that it was used mainly to hide her blade's identity and thus her own during the Holy Grail War. The wind sheath can not only be used offensively as a powerful hurricane blast, but can be used as a propellant to boost Saber in the direction that she wished to go. It was also pretty sharp in cutting things despite being a sheath in the first place. Its name was Invisible Air, a C-rank Anti-Unit Noble Phantasm.

But I wanted to see the actual blade itself.

What, you think this was a bit too early?! I really wanted to take a good look at it in case I died before using it even once. Besides, I will bet that anyone else in real life would want to see the real thing if they had the chance to do so.

_Because it contained all of our hopes and dreams. _

So I willed Invisible Air to unravel itself from the blade. It complied with my wishes and it disappeared like it was never there.

_Then I saw it_.

It was a divine blade of gold and blue that was created in the core of the planet and guarded by the Fae. It was made from the wishes of mankind, and was the pinnacle of holy swords. Saber received this from Lady Vivian after her previous sword, Caliburn, was shattered in a duel. A sword (if that can be called a sword in the first place) that can release a powerful beam of light after invoking its true name. It was the Last Phantasm. Its name is Excalibur, an A++ Anti-Fortress Noble Phantasm.

I sighed and willed Invisible Air to ravel around it again, seemingly breaking the illusion that it had on me. While I did admire the blade itself, there was one thing that caught my eye. My own reflection.

Instead of the black hair and brown eyes that I was used to seeing, I had light blonde hair and emerald green eyes. While my original face was not ugly, my current face was very handsome and youthful. It seems like my body has changed to a copy of Prototype Arthur Pendragon. It was not really a problem for me as this body was much more fit and stronger than mine, but it still dawned on me that this was not a dream and that I am also holding up someone's, no, a hero's legacy as well.

Whelp, no pressure on someone who needs to save Remnant from an unknown alien threat.

I decided to close my eyes again to see what else that I have received or what could be useful for me in the future.

Oh?! I do seem to have Avalon in my body, which would be a huge boon for me. The sheath not only has incredible regeneration powers to bring someone from the brink of death, but it is capable of pretty much blocking any offensive attacks and foreign objects. It was even able to block Gilgamesh's ultimate Noble Phantasm, Ea, which was even stronger in brute power than Saber's Excalibur. It was an EX-Rank Barrier Noble Phantasm for a reason.

It was an artifact that was supposed to be lost by Saber when she was alive, but it was now something special that her last Master returned to her. I sensed a bit of longing and love in that specific memory. I guess I would have to thank Shirou for this if I ever meet him again.

…

…

…

Wonder if I am getting a bit too OP at this point…?

…

…

…

Nah, I will be facing against an unknown alien threat, so I will take any help or advantage that I can get. Besides, while Avalon is essentially a cheat item, it can't help me with everything I might face nor will it make me truly invincible. My head is still a vulnerable spot that the sheath can't heal me from if it is destroyed.

…

…

…

Note to self, find some form of head protection if possible.

I then moved my focus elsewhere. Do I have a stat sheet to help me judge how strong I am now, like from the games?

Then something popped into my head.

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**Stats Sheet of Saber (1)**

**True Name: ?**

**Gender: Male**

**Height: 178 cm**

**Weight: 70 kg**

**Alignment: True Neutral**

**Class: Saber**

**Strength: B**

**Endurance: C**

**Agility: C+**

**Magic: A**

**Luck: B**

**Noble Phantasm: C-EX**

**Class Skills**

**Magic Resistance: B**

**Riding: B**

**Personal Skills**

**Mana Burst: A**

**Charisma: B**

**Instinct: B**

**?**

**?**

**Noble Phantasms  
**

**Invisible Air (Anti-Unit): C**

**Excalibur (Anti-Fortress): A++**

**Avalon (Barrier): EX**

**?**

**Servant Evaluation: ? is a servant that has gained the abilities of Saber Class Servant Artoria Pendragon. However, due to being fused together for the first time, some of the stats on this sheet do not reflect the true potential of ? and may have hidden stats as well. Other stats have been deteriorated from Artoria at her prime due to various reasons, but can be restored over time. Avalon was included as it was returned to Artoria Pendragon as a servant. The true name of ? cannot be seen at this time.**

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Oh, I do have a stat sheet like other Servants might have in the game! But what is this?!

I don't have a True Name?!

Well, I do still remember my real name easily, but maybe this is a chance to create a new name for myself? I am going to a new world with a new body. So why not create a new identity? What would make a decent sounding name?

…

…

…

Hmmm…..I got it!

Let's make my True Name as Gray Pendragon. The first name is a color-based name like you might see in Remnant, and the last name is because it is Saber's family name. The first name is also related to one of her descendents as well.

Then the stat sheet blurred and reformed itself in a few seconds.

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**True Name: Gray Pendragon**

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Suddenly, I felt like as though I was doing some kind of character creation right here… isn't this not supposed to be a gamer ability?! Wrong universe here!

After a few moments of my existential crisis thoughts, I turned my attention to a few discrepancies in my stat sheet. Why are these particular stats and skills different from Saber's usual stats? I decided to mentally 'click' on those stats for details. It is probably worth a try, right?

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**Magic Resistance (B): Cancels B-rank spells and chants below three verses. Even if being targeted by High-Thaumaturgy and Greater Rituals, it is difficult for Gray to be affected. This is degraded from A-Rank due to not having Dragon Core awakened fully.**

* * *

**Instinct (B): Sharpened sixth sense that nearly reach the realm of predicting the future. It is possible to halve penalties inflicted by auditory and visual interference. However, due to lack of combat experience by Gray, this is degraded by one rank and is mainly only active in combat situations.**

* * *

**?: This Personal Skill cannot be seen due to unfulfilled conditions.**

* * *

**?: This Personal Skill cannot be seen due to unfulfilled conditions.**

* * *

**?: This Noble Phantasm cannot be seen due to unfulfilled conditions.**

* * *

Well, that does explain quite a few things here. My B-Rank Magic Resistance must be similar to Saber Lily's situation, where the Dragon Core hasn't been fully awakened by either of us. I am not quite sure how to 'awaken' it, but I guess it involves a lot of magic power. While I was disappointed at the fact that I don't have the legendary A-rank Magic Resistance of Saber, I don't think it is necessary right away considering that there are hardly any magic users over there except for a few Maidens, Qrow, Salem, and Ozpin. And B-Rank Magic Resistance should be strong enough against their type of Magic from I can observe from the show.

On the other hand, would Dust count as magic or something else? I probably don't have to worry if it is considered as magic to my body, but writers of the show are kind of a little vague on this topic. Semblances are also something else to consider in the long run.

My instinct isn't as strong as Saber at this point, probably due to the fact I don't have any combat experience yet. But this will probably be really useful over there as that considering that danger always seems to pop out of nowhere for the RWBY cast, especially after the third season. This also means I could probably improve it back to A-rank like Saber. Somehow.

The ? does concerns me a bit. Two hidden Personal Skills and one hidden Noble Phantasm. This was not part of Saber's original skillset for sure, so I guess these hidden stats have to do more with me. This could either turn out good or bad for me. But going with anime logic here, the things that are hidden now will probably help turn things around later when I am in a pinch.

I hope.

Seeing that there is nothing else important that I can do for now, I do what pretty much what all Heroic Spirits would do on the Throne of Heroes.

Wait.

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

Okay, this is getting a bit boring. But I guess that is why I don't see any Heroic Spirits really rejecting any call for being summoned. Since they have pretty much little to do in the first place, but to just wait around.

But seriously, I do have a world to save soon! Where is my summoning?!

Just then, a strangely familiar voice rang out,

"_Please help me!"_

And a certain glyph that I recognized from the show appeared in front of me.

"So I guess this is my so-called enter strategy. It seems quite appropriate that I would be summoned like this. Not sure about my chosen master being Weiss though." I muttered to myself.

I then leaped into the glyph.

_And entered into a new and mysterious world in conflict._

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**Here is another chapter for you guys. Updates will not be this quick, but I will keep on writing this story as long as possible. A small note: while this is not supposed to be a humorous story, there will be moments of humor. Please leave a review if you can and thank you for reading this.**


	4. Ch 3: A Saber's First Steps

**I do not own RWBY or Fate universes. I would appreciate some polite and constructive criticism as well in the form of reviews. Here is a new chapter for the weekend.**

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**Chapter Three: A Saber's First Steps**

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So a lot of things have happened since I became a Servant of a certain Schnee.

When I entered the world, the first thing that met my eyes was a raging mech. And well, due to my gut instincts, I felt I should have destroyed it. So I did.

With no mercy.

I sprung forward and raised my sword as swiftly, blocking the mech's arm momentum with ease. Sparks flew as metal clashed against each other. Then I shoved my sword up vertically, which cause the mech to stumble back a bit and effectively leaving a gap in its guard.

Then I pounced at my prey.

The final results afterwards…? The mech was mere history.

Plus one scrap heap.

Still in combat mode, I tried to situate myself of when and where I was in Remnant in this timeline. Hmm, it seems like I am at Beacon Academy courtyard, it is currently nighttime, and there are bodies of Grimm and mechs around here.

Looks like I was in the middle of the Battle of Beacon right now. It is certainly too late to save Penny right now (which I regret not given the chance to do so), but I certainly save a few more people in the time frame that I do have. But there was something else I need to deal with first.

I stopped my short musing and turned around to see my would-be Master.

_She is much more beautiful than how she was portrayed in the show._

Those were my very first thoughts upon seeing my Master for the first time. Weiss seemed to be very exhausted right now from battle, but her determined ice-blue eyes showed that she was able to keep fighting. Her command seals on her left hand were a pale white-blue instead of the usual red color. They were formed into an appearance of a sword inside a sheath, and confirming my assumptions about my Master's identity. I could also feel a surprisingly strong bond between us.

Then I spoke out the words like a true Servant would to their Master.

"I have answered for a call for help. So I ask of you: Are you my Master?"

Yes! I finally said it! Was I so cool or what?! Praise me everyone!

But I seemed to have forgotten about one little detail in my raving thoughts.

I was not summoned by someone who knew about Heroic Servants or even an ounce of Mystery. So of course, Weiss's first coherent words to my response were…

"Huh?!"

I blinked and then nearly face palmed myself at my own stupidity.

I guess that was the expected response if I was in her position. I mean I just answered her call for a summon (which I was _not_ the one that she wanted to summon in the first place), destroyed a huge mech in front of her with ease, and asked if she was my Master (which she wouldn't understand that term in the first place). This is usually the part where explanations would occur, right?

But I was a bit more practical person and I knew that we don't have a lot of time for explanations as the Grimm are still rampaging in Vale right now. So I decided to speed things along a bit. So don't blame me if I was skipping on the necessary exposition for an unaware Master.

I bent down to her height and whispered to her, "Um, Master? This is the part where you should say yes. You did want someone to help you out, right?"

"Um…, yes?" Weiss answered hesitatingly.

Upon receiving that answer, I took up Saber's classic pose by vertically planting my blade into the ground and resting my hands on top of the hilt. My back was straight and I gazed sharply at my Master's eyes as though I was judging her.

"Perfect. Our pact has been sealed between us. I shall be your sword to fight any future challenges that you may face, and you shall be my will to guide me on my path." I then declared to her. I did not bow to her as I was emulating a proud King, but I gave her my respects as equals in this contract.

Weiss was looking at me in both awe and confusion in my declaration to her.

But before she could say anything, the ground shook around us. Something was approaching.

* * *

An Advanced Altesian Paladin rushed into the courtyard and then turns to face the students and myself. It retracts its arms revealing advanced cannons and its red eyes flares menacingly.

The silence afterwards was deafening.

"You have _got_ to be kidding me." Sun then broke the silence.

Although this situation looked pretty bad for the students, if I remembered correctly that particular Altesian Paladin should not be a threat to the students. It shuts down in time with the rest of the rogue androids and mechs when the controlling airship crashes down later. I don't really have to do anything at this point.

On the other hand, this is an excellent opportunity to test my new Servant body in combat.

I turned towards my Master, who was still in confusion about her situation. "Excuse me, Master. I will take care of the enemy in front of us."

Without waiting for an answer from Weiss, I closed my eyes and sought out the hidden energy inside me. I then felt it, something mysterious flowing from inside me, right above the navel. My mana. I then pulled that mana throughout my entire body.

_Flash!_

And that potent energy felt truly exhilarating as a blue-green aura erupted around me.

* * *

While it is true that Aura in Remnant enhances one's body capabilities by increasing their strength, endurance, and speed, there is a limit to how much they can do. On the other hand, Saber with her powerful dragon core can do much, much more than that.

For example, a speedy huntress like Weiss will be like a blur to a normal human that they would be able to see something, but not be able to react in time.

I bent my forward right knee down with my invisible sword at the ready as I was preparing to spring forward. I breathe in once and held it then. Wind and visible mana swirls became more chaotic in their movements.

But I, Gray Pendragon, was different. If a normal human saw me, they would not see a blur…

Then I finally released my breath…

And the ground underneath me before cracked with a shockwave…

_Rather they would think I had disappeared instead…_

Then I reappeared suddenly in front of the mech with my invisible sword already in mid-swing. The sword came down with not just great force, but with great _power_.

"Hah!" I shouted out. The invisible sword met huge mech.

This was Mana Burst, a skill that was used to raise the force of a strike or raise one's guard by gathering magical energy and releasing instantly. It was basically a rocket jet blast by using generous amounts of magical energy. With an A-Rank Mana Burst Skill, I can even use a normal stick and treat it like a one-time use Noble Phantasm level-weapon in terms of power.

So I should have expected that not only would the mech be completely decimated, but the ground itself was not spared from my blow. Only a 10 foot wide crater appeared where I impacted the ground.

Whoops? I think I have used a bit more Mana than expected.

But was that stunt really necessary in the first place? Nope. But was it awesome? Definitely yes!

But don't get me wrong here, I am not that stupid enough to gather too much attention this early in the game, but the only witnesses here are students and they would probably later assume that my last attack was a result of an unusual strength-based semblance. This was also a rare combat opportunity to see my fighting capabilities as a Servant till later events. I know now that not only I can destroy huge Paladins with ease, but that my current physical capabilities should surpass huntsmen and huntresses of this world.

But I should check on Weiss's condition. I need to make sure that my stunt didn't use too much of her energy. I was very sure that I will be relying on her to provide me the energy that I need to stay in this world.

A question came to my mind on that thought, "Does she have energy that can actually sustain me as a Servant?" It is a good question as aura and magic are two pretty distinct things around here. I heard from somewhere that Aura was necessary to power Magic in the case of Maidens. Also, Aura is the _manifestation of the soul_ and I know for a fact that Servants can sustain themselves with souls of others, so maybe Aura is able to substitute magical energy for me?

But in any case, I shouldn't use my more taxing abilities for now, like Excalibur.

I approached my Master while thinking about this, ignoring the obvious stares and whispers from the shocked students around me. Taking a good look at my Master, it would seem Weiss has no visible signs of aura exhaustion (which was good) and that I could now feel the bond flowing between us (so we are connected energy-wise). But I thought it would best to ask the source itself for a more conclusive answer.

"Are you alright, Master?" I asked afterwards.

Weiss finally regained her bearings and started to ask me a _lot_ of the questions. A lot. I should have expected this...but at least she seems quite fine for now.

"Who are you?! Are you a huntsman?! What do you mean by Master?! How did you get summoned by my glyphs?! And how in the world are you able to do this?!"

I cringed from the ringing of my ears. Man, Weiss does have some powerful lungs. But on the other hand, I should have expected it from someone who sings regularly at concerts.

"To answer your questions in order: You may call me Saber. I am not a huntsman, but a knight-in-training. You are a Master as that you have summoned me as a Servant. I did not get summoned by your glyphs, rather they were just a way to get over here. And finally I am able to do all these things because I am a Servant." I answered her questions softly, so only Weiss could hear me clearly.

I was purposely vague with my answers for both secrecy and time issues. But I am certainly not going to hide important information that she would need to know later, like Ozpin.

Weiss then opened her mouth again, likely for more questions, but I held out my hand to stop her. "I know that you have more questions to ask of me, but this is not exactly the time for a lot of explanations. We can discuss about this more after this battle is over."

Weiss opened and closed her mouth several times, before finally decided to lean against her sword in frustration or exhaustion, I do not know.

Probably for both reasons.

* * *

"Weiss!" A strangely familiar voice then cried out.

Turning around, I looked at a certain blonde Huntress student. Yang. She seems uncharacteristically worried, much different from the gung-ho character that I once knew in the earlier volumes.

"You're okay! Have you heard from Ruby?" Yang asked Weiss, who was still resting on her sword. She was still exhausted from her fight.

But seriously, I know that your stamina is not the best amongst your teammates, but everyone else here is not breathing hard as you! This is a major weakness that Weiss needs to somehow mitigate, or she won't be able to fight drawn out battles. Maybe I could help train her on that, preferably before and during the events of Volume 4.

"What about Blake?" Yang continued.

"She went after an Alpha. And some members of the White Fang," Weiss finally answered. She then pointed toward a certain direction.

"You look for Ruby, I'll meet up with Blake," Yang said. She then left in a hurry in search for Blake…

Wait a moment.

Isn't this the part where Yang eventually finds Adam and Blake? The part where Yang tries to attack Adam recklessly? The very same part where Yang gets her arm cut off by Adam and gets her traumatized in the end?! There is no way that I am letting her go to that conclusion_._ While I hate to get separated from my Master for a moment, here is a chance to make things a bit better.

I turned to Weiss and asked her. "Is it alright if I follow and help out your friend in her search?"

Weiss looked at me a bit suspiciously. "Why? Yang is a strong huntress. I think she can handle herself and find Blake easily."

However, I was prepared and gave her a reasonable excuse. "True. But while I would be conflicted in leaving you for now, your friend Yang is alone unlike you. And there is a very likely chance that there may be an enemy that she cannot beat."

When I saw that Weiss was still conflicted in her decision to trust me and let me go, I decided to ease her worries.

By making a solemn oath to her.

And the liberal use of my B-Rank Charisma skill. Truly, it is a very useful skill in conversations.

"You may rest your worries on whether I would harm your friend or not. I have already declared my sword to you, Master, and that my weight of my words is equal to weight of my sword. I solemnly vow as your Servant to bring back your friends here alive." I spoke out to her.

Whether Weiss was convinced by my words or the charm that radiated out of me, I still do not know at that time. But in the end, she decided to let me go. Still, there was one thing that puzzled me when I left her.

_Why was Weiss's face so red? Was there something wrong with her?_

* * *

**I hope that you enjoyed reading this story so far. So we have officially started the journey of OC Saber in Remnant. I think I will mainly be following the RWBY canon for now (up to Volume 6 at least), but anything could happen. This was my first time trying to do some action scenes, so I don't know if they are good or not. I am planning to make my word count to be about 1000 to 3000 words per chapter. So thank you for reading my story and please leave a review if you can. **


	5. Ch 4: Why Must They Always Run Away?

**I do not own RWBY or Fate universes. I would appreciate some polite and constructive criticism as well in the form of reviews. Here is a new chapter for you guys for this weekend.**

* * *

**Chapter Four: Why Must They Always Run Away?**

* * *

I was currently sitting in the cargo hold of a SDC-owned airship that was heading to Atlas, currently invisible in my spiritual form and contemplating the consequences of my past actions at Beacon Academy. Man, do I wish I had a Scroll play around with at least.

Oh, you wanted to ask how and why I am like this in the first place? It is a very long story (and it even might take two chapters), but it all started with the following events after I left Weiss to follow Yang a few nights ago.

* * *

When I followed Yang, I decided that I should follow her without revealing my presence to her due to two good reasons.

One, I don't really want to deal with explaining myself to Yang of why I was following her in the first place. Not only will I be delaying her in finding Blake, but I do not want to mess with a Yang. And I don't really like to explain myself a lot to other people.

No, I am not really afraid of an angry Yang. You would be very shallow to think if I am scared of being a target of her rage. As a Servant, I do not think that Yang would be able to harm me easily, even with her semblance activated. So at least in combat, I think I can handle her.

What I am more afraid of is her lesser known side, her mature and cunning side. Yang is not your typical dumb blonde and that she will know if something seems wrong. I am not really confident in keeping any secrets from her if we do talk to each other directly. But it doesn't mean I don't like Yang as a character. In fact, her straightforward and outgoing character is a refreshing change from the fake smiles and lies that I am used to in my world.

Two, I don't really know where exactly to find Blake, but canon Yang somehow does eventually find her. So I am basically depending on their plot armor as protagonists to accomplish this task. I didn't really change a lot of related things when Yang had last met Weiss, so I think this Yang will be able to find Blake in time.

But while Blake and Yang are the main protagonists with fate on their side, I don't exactly want to mess this up in fear of causing possible major character death and injuries. I mean, who expected that Pyrrha would have died near the end of Volume 3? I didn't, and it shows that this world can be cruel when you least expect it. Blake and Yang are no exception to this rule.

* * *

So with these valid reasons in mind, I tried out something that I somehow forgot to do during my time in the white space. Spiritual form.

All Servants have the ability to dematerialize from their material bodies to their spiritual bodies at will, except for special cases like Saber (who was still alive when she was summoned) as they are _Heroic Spirits_. The advantages of being in spiritual form are that a servant cannot not be detected by enemies with normal means or be affected by physical interference. It is also less taxing on the Master in term of energy upkeep and I can travel without being impeded by walls and other physical obstacles. On the other hand, the obvious disadvantages are that I cannot affect the material bodies easily (so I cannot simply fight easily in that state) and that I cannot carry physical objects with me through walls and the like. But one interesting point is that while my usual visual senses are cut off in this form, I can feel spiritual sensations. Like Aura.

_And Yang's burning soul was like a bright yellow sun in the darkness._

It was a bit weird not able to feel things or see things in this state, but the ability to simply move through walls and debris made it easy to follow Yang as she fought her way through the numerous Grimm and White Fang members. I didn't really help her out yet, since she seems to be handling it fine on her own.

I eventually followed Yang to a damaged building, where I sensed two other souls in there.

One soul was like a violet shadow with a weakened, yet distressed glow. The other soul was bloody red in color and had a very sharp and aggressive glow.

Blake and Adam, I presumed from my knowledge.

I then silently materialized in a hidden corner of the building and observed the following scene. However, moving with the shadows feels a bit unnatural to me for some reason. Perhaps it is because I am a Saber and not an Assassin? Well, it is not really important at this point. I am taking every advantage that I can get at this point. True Neutral is my alignment for a reason.

"Aaaaahhhh!"

A pained scream cried out. Blake.

Adam must have stabbed her to get Yang's attention.

I winced at Blake's scream. While I know that she will be physically fine except for a small scar on her torso, it really tears my heart apart in letting that happen. But I needed to wait for the right opportunity to jump in. I will have to apologize to Blake about this if I do meet her later.

"Get away from her!" Yang shouted out in anger at Adam.

This is it. Ready my sword. Get set to parry. Hold it steady…

"AAAAAAArrrrrrrrrrrrhhhhhh!" Yang screamed out. Her previously lilac eyes turned red as her blonde hair flared up like a Super Saiyan.

Yang then propelled herself forward and her right arm was preparing to punch Adam. Adam tensed and his sword hand started to move from his sheath in response.

NOW!

I propelled myself in a flash between Yang and Adam, with my sword already in mid-swing to meet Adam's powerful slice. I braced for the inevitable impact from Adam's attack.

_A crimson flash lashed out for its chosen target, its trail emitting bloodlust._

_Chiiiiiiinnnnnnnnnng!_

_Yet a pressurized hurricane fiercely met its charge, and sparks flew between the two opposing forces._

* * *

I was fine in the end.

This was surprising. Or not.

Well, what were you expecting here?! That a genuine noble phantasm would somehow lose against Adam's blade powered up by a semblance?! Please, Noble Phantasms weapons are in a different league of their own.

As for Yang's own attack? You thought she somehow hit me with her fist or at least crash into me accidentally? I am not that stupid enough to not take that in account. Even if I was, I still doubt that she can seriously hurt me as a Servant if she managed to hit me.

What I did was merely swirl some wind gusts around me to guide her momentum away from me, and toward Blake's position. I am not a Caster that I can do complex spells, but I can certainly manipulate whatever Mystery I do have to some degree of effectiveness. Yang did landed a bit disorientated from the change in direction, but she was fine and more importantly, she had Blake at her side now as I planned.

But even when I successfully blocked the attack, I still feel the killing intent lingering in the air. Glancing back at Yang, she was obviously unnerved by how much bloodlust that Adam was emitting. Well, I should now take the next step of my plan.

So I gave Adam a mighty push back with my sword, making him stumble a few feet back. In that brief moment, I already positioned myself between Adam and the two huntresses. Success.

"Who are you?!" said Adam. He quickly regained his balance and was now on his guard with his sword, Wilt, on his side and gripping onto his pistol, Blush. Adam Taurus is certainly one of the more powerful fighters in Remnant if you didn't count anyone with Magic, and that his overall combat ability makes him very dangerous to fight for any huntsmen or huntresses. But I bet that he has never met anyone who could withstand, much less fully block his semblance with little to no effort. But again he has never fought against a Servant before.

And to answer his previous question…

"I am simply a hero." I declared with my invisible sword raised, ready to strike down the enemy in front of me. "And as a hero, I save people."

"A hero?" Adam sneered. "There are no such things as heroes. There are only bigger monsters. A human like you will never understand that we need monsters rather than heroes for justice."

"On the contrary, I do understand heroes and monsters very well. Heroes defeat monsters." I retorted as I moved into a ready stance against my enemy.

But as much as I look forward to some real combat, fighting against Adam was not my main priority now. I still remember my promise to Weiss.

"Yang," I spoke out. I still kept my eyes on the Adam.

The blonde huntress snapped out her daze at the mention of her name. "Who are you?! Are you okay?!" Yang asked as she stood up unsteadily.

"Like I told him, I am a hero. And yes, I am fine. Now, can you escort your injured friend out of here? I will hold down the enemy here for you." I replied briskly to her. This was really not the time to talk now. Blake is in no fighting shape, and Yang isn't much better with her nearly depleted Aura levels. It would be better if they retreat now instead of fighting Adam.

Whether Yang was more worried about Blake's condition or whether she was convinced by my B-Rank Charisma, I do not know. But what I do know is that she did follow my orders without any more questions. Yang managed to shoulder Blake's arm over her and started to escort her out of the building in a hurry.

Observing Adam, he apparently wanted to stop Yang and Blake from escaping now. It was probably because he was not satisfied with the extent of Blake's 'punishment'. But all he can do now was stand there as he frustratingly watched the two girls leave the building safely.

_Because I was here._

* * *

"Why? Why must you always run from me, Blake?" Adam muttered under his breath. His fingers gripped the handle of his sword tightly in rage.

"Perhaps because you are a certain psychopath in the making?" I answered sarcastically.

Despite of my indifferent tone, I was feeling a bit sorry for Adam as a character. I knew that Adam was not an evil person in the beginning, but he had some serious mental issues that no one bothered to fix and how he ended up in the story was just pitiful. On the other hand, Adam now was a ruthless killer that will slay anyone who stood in his way for his brand of justice, no matter if they were Human or Faunus. I may empathize with his history, but I will certainly not show him mercy in this fight.

"Enough. I will not allow you to ruin this, human. I will simply slaughter you and find her again. I will deal with her sooner than later." Adam snarled at me.

"Oh? You think you have the ability to do so, even after our last exchange in blows?" I asked, raising a brow. Indeed, I was a bit puzzled at his lack of caution now. Wasn't he on guard before…?

Then Adam suddenly pointed his pistol at me and proceeded to fire several shots.

_Bang! Bang! Bang!_

I quickly responded by swinging my sword around to deflect the incoming projectiles.

_Ting! Tang! Ting!_

The intercepted bullets scattered in random directions away from me. I was now alert. What in the world was he thinking…?

But Adam then sheathed his sword again and his red hair started to glow ominously.

He was activating his semblance now?! When did he get enough energy to…?

My thoughts were interrupted as Adam unleashed a smaller wave of energy from his sword.

I hastily took up a defensive position and braced for impact again.

But the crimson projectile instead passed over me…

…and was heading toward the roof itself?

The attack then impacted onto its specific weak structural points…

…where it started crumble into rubble…

…and the said rubble was now falling on top of me…

Shoot! My instincts then kicked in, as I immediately rushed out of the collapsing building, avoiding large chunks of debris and ignoring the smaller ones on my way out. While I was confident that the falling debris will not hurt me as a Servant, it would have been a hassle to dig myself out.

Fortunately, I made it out easily without much a scratch. But I hate to admit that I have lost this round in terms of combat experience. Although I was obviously stronger and had the skills to deal with Adam, I don't have the necessary combat experience to fight effectively yet. True, I was able to make a plan ahead of time, but I still don't know how to think during unexpected combat situations. That is the main reason why I only have B-Rank Instinct Skill at this point, and why many of my stats have deteriorated from Saber's peak. Gripping my sword in frustration, I mentally made a note to keep improving and practice as there may be future enemies that I will not be able to deal with easily at my level. And maybe to play a bit more 'smarter' next time.

Glancing back at the collapsed structure, I somehow knew that Adam had escaped to fight another day. I did plan to only drive him off from Blake and Yang, but it was still a bit surprising to see Adam retreat in a fight on his own initiative. For someone who always gripes about his former partner running away all the time, he sure does not hesitate to retreat when a situation is unfavorable to him. On the other hand, it speaks well of Adam's deceptive intelligence in combat. I then looked around at my surroundings; it seems many of the White Fang members have started to retreat from Beacon as well.

* * *

So I guess I should be getting back to Weiss soon as my task is now complete. The students should now be heading toward the makeshift evacuation zone, where airships would normally arrive at and depart from Beacon.

I then closed my eyes and dematerialized to search for Blake and Yang with my spiritual senses toward that direction. I hope they made it back safely without me.

I eventually found them in midst of colorful lights of other auras, so it seems like they were able to make it back to the evacuation point. I also felt my Master-Servant bond with Weiss over there, so that was a relief as well. It seems though that canon has been mostly compliant up to this point, except for the few changes that I have made here and there. What a relief.

However, there was one thing that bothered me about the situation as I ran towards my Master's location. Why did the White Fang started to retreat from Beacon at this point in show?

_SCREEEEEEEECCCCHHHHH!_

Just then, a high-pitched scream reverberated throughout the night sky.

Oh, that's why. A Grimm Wyvern.

I had very little information about the Grimm Wyvern from what I know about the show. However, I do know is that it can spawn and attract lesser Grimm to itself, and that it was used to essentially make Beacon Academy uninhabitable in the process. It is capable of full flight and does charging attacks. I wasn't sure if it could spit out fireballs or any other ranged attacks, but considering that other similar sized Grimm has similar types of attacks and that the Grimm is inspired by the Wyvern in fantasy-type worlds, I would not be surprised if it can do that as well. The Wyvern is supposedly intelligent and old for a Grimm, and that it previously inhabited in Mountain Glenn, as though it was just there for this particular invasion.

It was also responsible for destroying the Vale CCT Tower earlier, which cut off all of the intercontinental communications between the kingdoms. Now that I think about it, I would really like to talk to the genius that developed such a vulnerable communication system. I really would. This is like the equivalent of the Internet not being able to work between different countries. At least local comms would still work, I think.

Overall, the Wyvern should still be not a match for me. But I was really anticipating of taking it down for once. Was I a battle junkie? No, I just thought that it would really fix some things up if the Wyvern was actually gone from Beacon Academy instead just being frozen by Ruby's silver eyes. On the other hand, how am I supposed to let Ruby activate her eyes for the first time, then? Her silver eyes will be important regardless of what changes that I do make later on. This is a dilemma that I don't know how to solve yet. Maybe I can give her some hints later?

One last question also came up to my mind while I headed toward the evacuation point to meet up with Weiss.

_Did I just imagine hearing a roar from my heart?_

* * *

**So another chapter has been done. I took some time to go over this specific chapter in detail, so it is bit longer than before. I think I was a bit too wordy with the descriptions and explanations, but I could edit it out later if necessary.**

**There is no set schedule for this story, but it should be at least once a week for now. Maybe two chapters if I feel people really like this story.**

**I also made the cover image for this story (it is my own design and creation, no matter how rough it is). You could say that it is the command seals that Weiss has.**

**So I believe that there are some questions about how Yang and Blake will be affected by Gray's interference in this scene, especially when Yang's arm wasn't cut off in the end. **

**I will not justify my decision about that change. It is not wrong for Gray to prevent Yang's arm from being cut off. If you are worried about their character development or plot progression, keep in mind that Yang's arm being cut off is just one of many factors here.**

**Thank you for reading my story and please leave a review if you can.**


	6. Ch 5: A Badass Knight-in-Training

**I do not own RWBY or Fate universes. Please give a review if you can and here is the next chapter.**

* * *

**Chapter Five: ****A Badass Knight-in-Training**

* * *

Dematerialized, I arrived near the evaluation point where Weiss was currently at. I don't reappear in front of her as it will bring a lot more questions than I was willing to answer, but I merely checked on her from a distance. It seems that she was fine, and the rest of Team RWBY was there as well. What a relief.

But my current mission isn't done yet, so I traversed toward the tower of Beacon Academy and materialized myself. Ruby and Weiss should be coming over here soon because they are searching for Jaune and Pyrrha, who went with Ozpin down at the vault.

But I believe that they already have failed to transfer the Fall Maiden powers to Pyrrha and that Cinder has already won in her battle against Ozpin at this point of the plot. Pyrrha should be still alive at this point, though I don't really know for how much longer. I could save her now without their help.

But as much as I am confident in doing so, I have the strangest feeling that I should first meet up with a certain red and white duo. My gut instincts had never driven me wrong before, so I decided to wait patiently for them.

* * *

Eventually, I saw Ruby and Weiss running towards my position. Then Weiss saw me. And boy, she had a lot to say to me.

"Where have you been?! I thought you were looking over Yang and Blake! Why are you here now?!" Weiss shouted at me furiously.

I winced at her rather direct questions. While I wanted to be a bit more secretive in my actions now, I acknowledge the fact that I will have to explain almost everything to her at some point.

"Master, I was not idle in my absence. During the time that I was away, I have watched and protected your friends from danger till they have reached safety. I am here now to help you out in whatever current task you may have," I answered carefully to pacify Weiss.

"Um, Weiss? Who is he? Do you know him?" Ruby asked confusingly to her partner.

"Ugghhh…." Weiss mumbled frustratingly as she placed her hand on her face.

"I can answer that question for you. In short, I am Weiss's Servant, where I have pledged my blade to protect her and assist her in her endeavors to the best of my abilities. You may call me Saber." I answered concisely to Ruby.

"Saber… So, are you a huntsman, then?" Ruby then asked, tilting her head. Damn, she was really too adorkable.

"No, more like a shining-knight in armor." I corrected her humorously. Well, I didn't lie about being a knight or a servant. I just let Ruby fill in the missing details.

"Ohhhh…" Ruby said understandingly.

"Wait a minute, since when were you…" Weiss started to retort.

"Master. I promise that I will provide more through explanation to you once this is all over. However, right now I am here to help you. Now, what is it that you are doing now?" I interrupted Weiss immediately. My answers were easier to accept than the idea that I was her summon.

Weiss looked like she was going to say more, but a ring from her Scroll interrupted her. Weiss picked up her Scroll and looked who was calling her.

"It's Jaune." Weiss said to Ruby as she picked up the call.

"Jaune? Where are you?" Weiss asked.

"Weiss! Please you have to stop her!" Jaune answered over the Scroll.

"What?"

"Pyrrha! She's going after that woman… at the top of the tower! She doesn't stand a chance!" Jaune desperately explained over the scroll.

I glanced at the tower. Looks like Pyrrha is probably up there by now.

"Jaune, what are you talking about? Where are you?"

"Don't worry about me! Please… You have to save Pyrrha." Jaune replied brokenly.

"We will. Are you okay?" Weiss said concernedly.

The call was suddenly cut off.

"Jaune? Jaune!" Weiss said repeatedly as she tried to get a hold on Jaune.

Then the ground shook. A Grimm Wyvern suddenly appeared and flew around the tower, where it screeched dominatingly at its surroundings. Well, that is something that I will have to solve very soon.

Ruby then took out her Crescent Rose from her back, and unleashed it into its scythe form.

"I have a plan," Ruby said.

"You always do," Weiss replied as she drew out her own weapon, Myrtenaster.

Well then, I can't let my Master fight without me now then? I thought amusingly to myself as I summoned my blade of wind into my hands.

We then all charged toward the tower and began slaughtering Grimm left and right.

* * *

Ruby became a whirl of death as she swung her scythe gracefully, chopping off Grimm limbs and heads around her. After firing several sniper shots that accurately punctured the approaching Grimm on her left, she then jumped toward a group of Grimm. She performed a mid-air spin attack and slammed the blade onto the ground, creating a powerful shockwave in her midst. The surrounding Grimm were sent flying away.

I wonder if she would make a better Lancer or Archer. Where would a scythe even fit in the seven Servant classes? Scyther? I don't know a lot of servants that fight with scythes.

Weiss, on the other hand, was a more methodical fighter. She calculatedly parried blows from the Grimm and lunged at weak spots that were presented to her. As expected from someone who fights with a rapier. Her fighting style was a different type of gracefulness from Ruby's. While Ruby fights like a wild storm filled with rose petals, Weiss's battle style was like a sharp and precise icicle that pierces and parries.

But I can't still figure out how she fights in those heels of hers, though.

As for me, I was more like force of destruction.

The Grimm were not cut down by me, the Grimm were _decimated by me_. I did not move as a blur, I _moved as a_ _flash._ I did not create shockwaves, I _cracked the air itself_. I was perhaps not as graceful as Saber would have been in battle, but I made a point to the Grimm. _I was not something that anyone could mess with easily._

We were definitely stronger and killing dozens of Grimm at a steady pace. We were more skilled and coordinated in our fighting. It is not likely that we would be beaten by these few Grimm.

But in the end, we were losing. Why? Because we were running out of time to save Pyrrha.

"We've gotta hurry!" Ruby spoke out as she pulled her blade from the ground. It looks like she also realized this point.

Weiss narrowed her eyes up at the tower in response. Then she pointed her finger at it and created a line of blue-white glyphs on the tower wall surface to the very top.

"You can do this," Weiss said as she glanced at Ruby. But she won't be able to do it. Well, not at least without my help this time.

"If I may, I have a way to get up the tower easily with both of you at the same time. And it is much faster," I spoke out to them.

"Really?" Ruby asked me excitingly.

On the other hand…

"Really?" Weiss asked me questionably.

"Yes, really. Now hold on." I answered briefly in annoyance.

"What do you mean by…" Weiss started to ask.

Before she could finished, I already dismissed my blade and scooped both of them into my arms.

"Hey?! What are you thinking, you brute!" Weiss protested from her position.

I didn't answer her and _started to run up the tower. Very fast._ With my full C+-Rank Agility.

At this rank, I am able to perform certain feats like running on vertical surfaces easily. And with the extra modifier at the end, I am able to go even faster in certain situations. Much, much faster than what Ruby can go with her semblance currently. The high-pitched screams from the two girls in my arms should have convinced me of that fact.

* * *

I managed to reach the top of the tower just in time to see Cinder shoot Pyrrha's right heel with her glass arrow. Oh, that's going to hurt a bit… I guess that being based on the legend of Achilles has some obvious downsides.

"Aah!" Pyrrha cried out in pain as she fell to the ground.

"Pyrrha!" Ruby and Weiss screamed out in worry. They struggled to get out of my arms, but I held them firmly. This was not a good time to let them go toward their friend, especially with a powerful enemy nearby.

Pyrrha tried to get up from her knees, but collapsed afterwards onto her hands from the pain of her injured heel. Cinder smiled cruelly at her struggle, but then noticed us.

"Oh? It seems we have uninvited guests to the party. Then let me welcome you…to your death." Cinder said maliciously to us.

She suddenly fired a stream of hungry flame at us. Presumably to burn us to death. Great.

On the other hand, she hasn't met a Servant yet. More specifically, she hasn't met a Saber with B-Rank Magic Resistance.

I abruptly dropped the girls behind me and greeted the flame itself to protect them.

"Saber!" Ruby and Weiss cried out in distress as the fire magic collided with me. But I was not burned. The hungry flame was impeded from reaching me as if I had an invisible barrier and eventually dissipated harmlessly.

"What!" Cinder cried out in surprise. I imagined that she thought most people would not be able to resist easily against her with full Maiden powers now. But I was among the exception.

"You cannot hurt me. You cannot beat me." I answered calmly. "And you will lose. It is futile."

Cinder gritted her teeth at my answer and proceeded to shoot out numerous fireballs at me. Futile.

I crossed my arms as the fireballs collided with my Magic Resistance and then disappeared in front of me. Futile.

Her fireballs became more erratic and furious as time passed on. Futile.

She then tried firing glass projectiles imbued with fire magic at me. Not a bad idea, but I simply knocked them away with a swing of my right gauntlet. I doubt that they could even pierce me with my magic armor and C-Rank Endurance. Futile.

She finally resorted to close combat, forming orange glowing falchions into her hands. She then leaped up and swung them down on me at full strength. Is it strange to think that Cinder was like a certain Archer that I knew?

So I simply sidestepped her blow and then slammed my fist into her torso. Cinder's face immediately distorted in pain as she was sent flying back, eventually landing ungracefully a few meters back. I did not hit her with my Servant-level strength, but I was wearing heavy gauntlets. Magical, but still heavy.

_It. Was. Still. Futile. _

Cinder then unsteadily stood up on her two feet as she tried to recover from my previous blow. "Who the hell are you?!" Cinder yelled ragingly, even as a hint of fear appeared in her amber eyes.

"As I told you, it is futile. You will still lose in the end." I said simply, ignoring her question. Why should I tell her my identity? I may have Saber's sense of honor, but I do not give any respect to people who treat other lives so callously.

Cinder simmered in frustration at my dismissal at her question, but she eventually regained her cool. Then she sneered at me.

"So what if you managed to survive my attacks? In the end, you are just a foolish huntsman who is out of his league." Cinder said as she rose into the air.

"Get him."

* * *

_SCREEEEEEEECCCCHHHHH!_

The Grimm Wyvern, who was observing quietly up to this point, then roared at me aggressively.

I simply smirked.

An overgrown lizard against a full-powered Saber Servant? Well, I am itching for a fight and I had the perfect plan to eliminate it quickly without any lingering problems afterwards.

"Well, you are wrong about who I am." I replied stoically. I then materialized my sword, hidden by Invisible Air. "For I am knight-in-training."

Then I charged at my enemy.

The Grimm Wyvern responded by approaching me with its maw open, presumably to swallow me whole or tear me apart into pieces if I let it do so.

But I had other ideas in mind.

Do you remember the Beacon initiation that happens in Volume 1? Let's just say that I took a trick out of Yang's book when she fought against the Alpha Nevermore that time.

So I jumped into the maw of the Wyvern, where I firmly planted my feet on the lower jaw and grappled the upper jaw with my left hand.

The result?

"I will make you question everything you know," I then spoke out softly. I was currently holding apart the maw of Grimm Wyvern, while it struggled to crush me in its jaws to no prevail.

Cinder probably didn't expect that I would be prying apart the jaws of the Grimm Wyvern easily with one hand. B-Rank Strength was really no joke. She also didn't probably expect that I would do the same thing as Yang did afterwards.

Except I did it with much more brutal force than her shotgun gauntlets can ever muster.

How? I simply thrust my blade of wind forward to the inside of the maw and pushed a generous amount of mana into the compressed hurricane. At the same time, I shouted out the full name of the Noble Phantasm, activating it for the first time.

**"Strike Air, Hammer of the Wind King!"**

My world became gusts of wind, blood and Grimm bits. A hurricane burst out from the wyvern's body, killing it instantly. The very air became distorted around the tower, disturbed by the immense amount of magic released.

Since the air that makes up the Invisible Air is not a vacuum, the air moving around the sword is actually a cutting whirlwind. It is not unlike the concept of the wind-style Rasenshuriken from the Naruto series. So the Grimm Wyvern essentially just swallowed a spinning blender blade that tore it from the inside out.

As the remains of the Grimm disintegrated back to black dust, I then landed back onto the top of the still-mostly intact tower. I ignored the stares of awe, fear, and disbelief from everyone present from my performance. I was currently grimacing in pain while trying not to show it.

_Arrrrgghhh!_

Why does my body in so much pain right now?! It feels like I sprained all of my muscles in every part of my body! Is it because I am not used to this expenditure of mana? But don't I have a Servant body...? Judging from my current reserves, I could certainly use Invisible Air several more times, but my body seems to need to recover before I can use it again next time. I then wondered how using Excalibur would affect me…

But I preserved through the immense pain and finished with one ominous declaration to my enemy. It was something that I knew will give a psychological blow to Cinder.

"Do you believe in destiny? Then your destiny will consume you in the end."

I then stare at Cinder sharply with my bright green eyes and she noticeably flinched in fear. There was still a glint of fury and unwillingness in her eyes. Yet there was also something else? Killing intent?

"Perhaps I cannot kill you now, knight," Cinder spat out in reply. What was she thinking now…? And why am I having a sudden ominous feeling now…?

"But I can certainly kill this helpless girl right here before your very eyes."

Who? I questioned till Cinder directed her arm toward Pyrrha. She was currently unconscious on the floor. Was she too exhausted from her previous battle…?

A fiery ball of flame then condensed in Cinder's palm.

Shoot! I cursed at my carelessness _again_ as I rushed toward Pyrrha to prevent her from being burned to certain death. Don't die on me now, Pyrrha! Or those mad Arkos fans will definitely kill me!

Time seemed to slow down around me as I ran toward her. Will I make it in time…? Or will I fail…?

* * *

_Then the world decided to be merciful for me._

"PYRRHA!" Ruby suddenly screamed out.

_And brilliant silver light shone throughout the dark night._

"WHAT!" Cinder shouted out in disbelief as the blinding light continued to spread out.

I closed my eyes from the bright light. Not a moment is ever dull with you, huh, Ruby?

When the light eventually receded, Cinder was gone. She must have retreated from the scene in the chaos, and was also probably injured in the aftermath. Well, I expect to see her again sooner than later. People like her do not go down quietly.

Ruby and Pyrrha were now unconscious, one was mentally exhausted from the overuse of her Silver Eyes and other was physically exhausted and injured from battle. Weiss, on the other hand, was alive and well to my relief. I was almost happy how things turned out.

Almost.

Weiss nearly bombarded me again with so many questions that I couldn't really list them out here, so I tried to distract her by pointing out that her friends needed her attention soon.

"Master, I understand that you have more questions than before. But you should get your friends back to the evacuation zone, it is not safe here," I interrupted her line of questioning.

Weiss paused in mid-sentence for a bit and glanced at her friends. Concern filled her icy blue eyes. She then sighed as she knew there were more important things to do. "Well, can you help me carry them back at least?" Weiss asked me exasperatedly.

"No, I am afraid I cannot do that right now as much as I want to. But someone friendly is coming over to help you out," I answered after sensing a certain crow flying up the tower. I really don't want to get too heavily involved at this point yet. The time is not right.

"I will reappear before you and answer your questions when things have finally settled down. And I politely request that you keep silence about my presence," I said as I dematerialized before Weiss could even protest. She blinked at the fact that I just disappeared in front of her, and grumbled something under her breath.

I couldn't hear it quite clearly, but I feel I should be insulted.

Qrow showed up a moment later, only to find an ice princess, a little red riding hood, and an invincible champion at the scene. He did not see a shining-knight in armor.

_Of course, I was still there. I was always looking out for my princess._

* * *

**So the Battle of Beacon has officially ended at this point. Gray was successful in his planned changes so far, but will it bite him back later?**

**A few points about the chapter:**

**Magic Resistance may look overpowered at this point, but Saber with her A-Rank Magic Resistance was able easily tank Caster's magecraft (which was at the level of the Age of Gods). Cinder's Magic is still not something to dismiss easily, but she hasn't had the necessary training for more impressive feats (like manipulating the weather) and that Saber servants are just OP against Caster-like opponents. **

**Gray suffers from excessive mana expenditure as his body is not used to it yet, even as a full Servant. He will get used it soon.**

**Excalibur was not used at this point because it is more like a trump card and I don't think a Grimm Wyvern really is enough to warrant that. I do have some plans about it.**

**I do plan on making an interlude about the other character perspectives on the aftermath. Maybe.**

**On a side note, do you think Ruby would make a better Lancer or Archer class servant? Or some other class?**

**So thank you for reading my story and please share this story with others if you like it.**


	7. Interlude: Ruby

**I do not own RWBY or Fate universes. Please share this story with others if you like it. This is my first interlude attempt.**

* * *

**Interlude: Ruby**

* * *

Silver light filled her dreams. It was strange, yet beautiful.

Numerous murky voices echo nearby. Who was talking?

"Is she alright…I got ya, kiddo…Ruby!…what happened…must have activated her eyes…This is bad…"

The small voices suddenly ceased as her dream world turned red and an image of a whole moon became the only source of light there. There was no life around her except for a few flying birds; their small and dark silhouettes contrasted with white moonlight. Then a single, yet ominous voice rang out to her.

_"So this is the one honest and small soul you were hiding from me. Yet it does not matter. She will meet the same inevitable and pitiful demise as her predecessor. I look forward to see her despair in the end."_

Pitch black darkness then enveloped her and her thoughts were no more.

* * *

The first conscious sound that Ruby heard was the tweeting of birds. Her silver eyes then crack open, only to greet the bright morning sunlight. Her pupils contracted as her eyes adjusted to the brightness. She then looks around and sees her dad, who was asleep in a chair. Ruby sits up quietly and winced as a throbbing headache assaulted her mind. What happened to her…?

Her dad, Taiyang, then stirs awake from the sounds she was making. His gentle blue eyes met her confused silver ones.

"Ruby!" Taiyang exclaims in relief. He quickly gets up and kneels by her bed, examining her condition. "You're awake!"

"Ugh…what happened?" Ruby asked while clutching her head from the pain. She hadn't got a headache this bad since _that time_. That particular event wasn't something she wanted to remember, but it had involved an oven, a pair of scissors, and Zwei's medicine.

Plus that dream…it felt real. Ruby felt that there was something important in her dream, but she couldn't remember the details very well. The only thing that she got out of that dream was a lingering ominous feeling.

"Your uncle Qrow found you, unconscious. He got you out of there, though, and brought you home safe," Taiyang explained to her.

Ruby looks down in deep thought and the events of that night came rushing to her head. That wasn't a nightmare. It was real. She then swivels her head toward her dad. "Wait! Yang! Is she alright?!"

Taiyang pauses for a moment and then he answers her hesitantly. "Uh…She's uh…She's gonna be alright. She is fine physically, I think she's just…I think it's just gonna take some time for her to get used to things. She's strong; she won't let this stop her."

Taiyang covers his eyes for a moment, sniffling. Ruby looks at him in concern. She was glad that Yang wasn't hurt (or worse). But was Yang really okay in the inside? Last time Ruby saw her, Yang was clutching onto an injured Blake at her side with an unreadable expression on her face. But her eyes revealed something that Ruby thought she would never see in her sister. Fear.

Taiyang then looks up at Ruby with a watery smile on his face, as though he was trying to reassure her. "But I'm just glad to have my girls back at home."

Ruby was still worried about Yang, but she also wanted to ask everything else that happened since. "What happened to the school!? And Vale?! Were they able to clear out the Grimm?" Ruby asked.

"Things at Vale are under control, but the school will… take a bit longer to clear out the Grimm. Honestly, if you haven't taken down that thing, whatever it is, we may never have a chance to take back the school. So things aren't as bad as they seem," Taiyang informed her. Well, that was a relief. But what did her dad mean by her taking down something?

So Ruby tilted her head curiously at him. "I did…what?"

"Hmm?" Taiyang didn't seem to understand her confusion.

"You said I took down that thing. What do you mean?" Ruby clarified her previous question.

Taiyang notably flinched at her question. "Oh…I…Look, that's not so important right now. We can talk about it later. Things are just…kind of a mess," Taiyang explained to her vaguely.

"It's always a mess."

Ruby and Taiyang turned their heads to the source of the new voice, where they see Qrow standing by the doorway. He swirls the contents of his flask before downing it swiftly. He shakes it down a bit for any last droplets and sighs in disappointment when it was clear that the flask was empty.

"Mind if we have a minute?" Qrow then asks Taiyang. His hidden message was clear. Leave.

"What, I can't stay here?!" Taiyang protests as he narrows his eyes at Qrow.

Qrow gives Taiyang a pointed look with his red eyes. _"Tai. Please."_ His voice gave no room for compromise.

Taiyang then stands up and sighs in response. He then leans towards Ruby, giving her an affectionate kiss on the forehead.

"I'm glad you're alright," Taiyang said to Ruby with a small smile on his face as he starts to exit from the room. "I'll go make us some tea."

* * *

Taiyang passes Qrow on the way out, but not before giving him the evil glare. Qrow simply ignores him as he approaches Ruby's bed. Her uncle grabs a chair and drags it along with him. He twirls it around to face her bed and sits in it with a significant slouch. He then crosses his legs and gets comfortable before speaking to Ruby.

"So…, how are you feeling?"

"Um… I kind of hurt…all over," Ruby answered him honestly.

Qrow huffs in amusement at her frank answer. "That makes sense, after what you did." He crosses his arms and appears to be in deep thought. Ruby was getting more annoyed and confused. What were they talking about?

"You guys keep saying that! That I did something! What are you talking about?!" Ruby raises her voice out in frustration. What did she really do?

Qrow merely uncrosses his arms and legs, and leans forward in the chair. Ruby suddenly felt uncomfortable at the serious look that her uncle was giving her. Did she do something wrong? But Qrow didn't give her an answer; he asked her a question instead.

"What's the last thing you remember?"

Ruby was confused by his question, but focused on her memories for a bit. "I was at the top of the tower with Weiss, and when I was there, I…" Ruby then gasps as a certain, painful memory came to her mind. _Pyrrha, crying out in pain as a pitch black arrow struck her in heel._ "Pyrrha! Is she…?" Ruby asked fearfully. She desperately hoped Pyrrha was alright.

"She's fine. She is currently in the hospital now, but she will be alright. That girl is made of stronger stuff than you think," Qrow assures her. "Last time I checked, blonde boy and his teammates were looking over her."

Ruby sighs in apparent relief. At least she knows that one of her friends was still alive. Ruby wouldn't know what she will do if Pyrrha had actually died that night. "I was at the top; I saw Pyrrha and Cinder…" Ruby frowns at the thought of that woman. "I remember a large Grimm, it exploded into pieces..."

"What?!" Qrow perked up at this detail. Ruby didn't notice his apparent interest as she continued her story.

"Yeah, it exploded into pieces. It was taken down by someone else who was helping us; he called himself a knight, not a huntsman. I think his name was umm…S-Saber. He used some sort of wind power, I-I don't know if that was his semblance or usage of dust. But I know it was something special, because he destroyed that huge Grimm with that wind," Ruby recollected from her memories.

"Interesting…" Qrow murmured to himself.

"He also fought against Cinder, where she couldn't beat him, no matter what she did," Ruby said. "But Cinder finally decided to kill Pyrrha when she was unconscious…and then everything went white!" Ruby grips her blanket tightly, as tears started to form in her eyes.

Ruby felt ashamed that she was useless in that fight. Why couldn't she do anything? Even though the knight was able to handle Cinder on his own, she should have helped out. Forget the fact that Cinder was stronger, she could have still helped. Maybe she could have gotten Pyrrha out of the way, so he could have defeated Cinder easily without any burdens on his mind.

_Like she was…_

Qrow stayed silent till this point. "Anything else?"

"I remember…my head hurting," Ruby eventually said to him, wiping her tears away.

Qrow then proceeds to question Ruby. "The night you met Ozpin, what was the first thing he said to you?"

Ruby blinked and looks down in thought. What was so important of what Ozpin told her that night? She couldn't exactly remember…

"I…I don't know. I think it was something about…" Ruby started to speak hesitantly.

"Silver Eyes," Qrow finished her sentence for her. "That's an extremely rare trait."

"So?" Ruby answers, shrugging her shoulders. Ruby didn't understand why her eyes were special. Sure, they were rare eye color in Remnant, but that didn't mean anything right? Does eye color represent a level of strength or something like that?

Qrow proceeds with his explanation. "You're special, Ruby. And not in the 'Daddy loves his special angel' kind of way. You're special the same way your mom was." Ruby blinks at this revelation. Mom? What was special about her that she shared with Mom?

"Remnant's full of legends and stories, some of them true, some made up. But there's one Oz told me from a very long time ago. Back before Huntsmen, before Kingdoms, it was said that those born with silver eyes were destined to lead the life of a warrior." Ruby widens her eyes at this revelation.

"You see, the creatures of Grimm, the most fearsome monsters mankind had ever encountered, were afraid of those silver-eyed warriors. They were the best of the best. It was said that even a single look from one of these fighters could strike a Grimm down," Qrow chuckles. "Heh. It's a ridiculous story."

Ruby's mind was blank at the fact that she could possibly be one of these silver-eye warriors from the legends. Then she realized why they thought she did something to the Grimm. "But… you think that I might be…" Ruby asks him with uncertainty.

Qrow chuckles. "Well…, I thought that you were the one who decimated the giant monster on the top of Beacon Tower till you told me your side of the story. But the white light that illuminated that night was certainly from you. And last time I checked, ice princess and champion girl don't have silver color eyes."

Qrow then mutters something under his breath that Ruby couldn't quite hear clearly, "…a knight…gic…part…le…zp…lic…"

After murmuring to himself for a few seconds, Qrow gets up on his feet and strolls towards the window. He then leans against the sill and stares outside.

Then Ruby realized something. "Wait…wait, how did you know what Ozpin said to me…the night we met?"

Her uncle answers her with a faraway tone as though his thoughts lied elsewhere. "All those missions I go on…all the times I'm away in some far-off place… it's been for Ozpin. But he's missing now. Something's been set in motion…and with Oz gone, I'll have to pick up where he left off."

Ruby thought back in the times that Uncle Qrow had left in his numerous missions. She didn't know much at the time, but many of his missions were long-term and in far-away places like Mistral and Vacuo. She found it quite odd because of the fact that most huntsmen and huntresses usually operate near their areas where they live in, and even their far-away missions usually reside in their respective kingdom territories. Ruby usually just chalked it off as Uncle Qrow being a badass elite huntsman that was above average huntsmen, but she now realized that there was much more going on behind the scenes. And Professor Ozpin was an important part of this, according to her uncle.

But that brought another point. She could help people, right? "And what could I do? If I'm so special, then I can help! Right?" Ruby asked him determinedly. She wasn't still sure if her silver eyes were really special, but if her eyes could help people, why can't she help as well?

Qrow turns his head and looks her for a bit. He then sighs. "You really wanna help? Get some rest. You're in no condition to go anywhere right now." Her uncle starts heading out of her room. "Besides, our enemy's trail leads all the way to Haven. That'd be quite a trip for a pipsqueak like you." Ruby mentally took note that their enemies were from Haven. She could probably get her team together to Haven (along with Team JNPR, whom she knows will probably come) and find their answers there. But it would be after she finds out what happen to the rest of her team. She wasn't sure if they were okay or not after that night.

"Catch ya later, kiddo," Qrow winks at her as he heads out the door.

* * *

Ruby is now sitting alone with her thoughts all jumbled up. She gazes at the window toward the outside, and then stares at herself in the large mirror opposite of her. Her silver eyes, which were nothing special to her till now, seem to be staring back intensely at her. Was she able to do something more? She thought so, especially when she witnessed a knight, no, a hero can do that night. She had heard many stories from Yang about heroes that protected everyone and defeated all evil, and that knight was a living example of what she wanted to be like. She always wanted to become a huntress in the first place because she wanted to protect everyone else. She didn't want to be helpless. So why can't she do the same thing as _him_, especially when she has also something special herself?

_After all, it is not wrong to save others. But first, she should probably go see Yang…_

* * *

**Here is the interlude of Ruby's perspective after the Battle of Beacon. There isn't a whole lot of difference in terms of dialogue here from the canon version, but I just added a few peeks at another character's thoughts and some of the changes that may occur in the future. **

**A few explanations on the interlude: Taiyang did think that Ruby was responsible for killing Wyvern. Qrow, on the other hand, was a bit more skeptical about it, but couldn't find any other reasonable explanations on the Wyvern's disappearance till Ruby told him her side of the story. Qrow now knows about the existence of Saber. But he doesn't have much concrete information (like Cinder) to know who he is exactly and what role he has in their secret war. Ruby doesn't know that she was the one who actually saved Pyrrha's life in the end. The only witnesses who have seen through the entire fight were Weiss, Cinder, and Gray.**

**A side note: I just want to ask if you guys want one or two more interludes from different character perspectives about Battle of Beacon aftermath before going back to the main storyline. I am leaning toward Pyrrha or Weiss in this case. **

**The story will primarily be a first- person perspective from Gray's POV, but there may be times where I will switch momentarily to third-person perspective on another character's POV when I feel it is appropriate.**

**So thank you for reading my story and please support this story if you really like it.**


	8. Interlude: Pyrrha

**I do not own RWBY or Fate universes. This is the chapter for this weekend. Please leave a polite review if you can. Another interlude...**

* * *

**Interlude: Pyrrha**

* * *

Beacon was burning around her. Her friends were nowhere to be found. She was alone against her enemy.

Facing her was a woman that she knew very well now. Cinder.

Cinder was currently wielding an ebony-colored bow in her left hand. A pitch black arrow then came into existence into her other one. She notched the arrow and slowly drew it back, aiming it toward her. Killing intent was evident in her amber eyes with glowing orange flames around them.

Pyrrha wanted to move away, but she couldn't. Why? Because her friends' ghosts were holding her down. Ruby, with her sad silver eyes, clung onto her left leg. Nora and Ren held her feet down with uncharacteristic solemn faces. There were also many others like them, but Jaune's face haunted her the most. He grasped onto her shield arm tightly, preventing her from raising her shield to block the attack. He had a mocking smile on his face as he then spoke to her.

_Why Pyrrha, why did you leave us, leave me behind? So you can stay up your pedestal alone? Is this what you truly wanted? To be among the first to die meaninglessly in a war? Then you can die alone._

Then the arrow was released. Pyrrha could only watch helplessly as it flew towards her.

Then the world shattered around her just before its tip could impact her chest. Pyrrha now appeared inside an endless black space.

A mirror image of herself then appeared in front of her. They both had the same face, weapons, and clothing. The only difference between them was a pitch-black arrow sticking out of her mirror image's chest. Then her doppelganger spoke out to her with an eerie, disembodied voice.

_Do you believe in destiny?_

Suddenly, the doppelganger's body started to crumble away into orange embers and dissipated into nothingness. A golden brown circlet on the ground was the only piece of evidence that her doppelganger did exist.

_Then this is your fate._

Then the solid ground underneath Pyrrha crumbled away. She fell.

_She kept falling. She fell into eternal darkness…_

* * *

In another place, a certain red-hair girl awakens in panic with her green eyes wide open. Pyrrha was gasping desperately for air as her right hand clutched her chest for an arrow wound that was never there. Her heartbeat was pulsing rapidly from the stress of her nightmare. She needed to pull herself together!

_I…need… to… calm… down! Take…deep…breaths…_

She then closed her eyes to calm herself, and her erratic gasps turned into more controlled breaths. Finally, her heart calmed down and she was able to think more clearly now. She sighed in relief. _It was just a dream…but where am I?_

Pyrrha looked down at herself. She was not wearing her armor anymore, but wearing a white gown. Her clothes plus her circlet were placed neatly folded beside her on a side table. Pyrrha involuntarily shuddered at the sight of her circlet. The final words of her doppelganger echoed loudly in her mind. But she eventually steeled herself once more.

_It is just a nightmare…Don't let it get to you…_

Pyrrha then observed rest of her surroundings and saw that she was in some sort of large hospital room. From the looks of it, the room was meant to hold single VIP patients. It was probably because of her status as a celebrity huntress that she received this kind of treatment. On one hand, she was not pleased of being treated differently from others, who may have needed the treatment more than she did. On the other hand, she admitted that she needed the privacy to think of what happened to her recently.

Then various memories of that night rushed into her mind.

Ozpin, who was buying them time to escape with a grim look on his face. Cinder, who had a malicious and triumph smile as her amber eyes glowed from gaining the Maiden powers. Flames everywhere. Jaune, who shouted in worry as she was in the pod, screaming at the pain from the aura transfer. Amber, who was gasping her last breath as an arrow pierced through her chest. A burning tower. Throwing metal gears at Cinder with her semblance. A pitch-black arrow striking her heel. A Grimm Wyvern charging at the tower. Furls of embers flying. Ruby and Weiss screaming out her name in worry. Shockwave. Fire. Destiny. Fate. Darkness. Silver Light. Then nothingness.

Pyrrha reeled from the sudden memories that assaulted her, but she managed to focus herself. _It is alright. I am still alive. But are Jaune and others okay? I hope so._

After giving it some thought, Pyrrha decided to step out of the room to see what the situation was. She could probably find a doctor or nurse who could tell her something about her friends and Beacon.

Pyrrha moved over to the left side of her bed and threw her legs over. She then tried to stand up unsteadily on her feet. A dull pain shot through in her right heel.

She stumbled back onto her bed in surprise at the pain. She glanced at her right heel, which she noticed was heavily bandaged. Her injury must have been caused by the arrow that Cinder shot at her.

Pyrrha grimaced at her body's current condition. She may have a slight limp in her step for a while, even after her heel recovers. While Aura did heal most injuries to a certain extent, it didn't have much effect on older or severe injuries that mostly healed on their own like Weiss's eye scar. While the limp wouldn't affect her from being a huntress, she would have to be careful of not letting it become her weakness in combat.

_So much for Invincible Girl._

* * *

Just then, the door to the room opened up and interrupted her thoughts. A familiar blonde boy came in and was holding up a tray of breakfast. Then his blue eyes met her vivid green eyes.

_Jaune._

The said tray then fell down and crashed onto the floor, scattering its contents. It was a pity. She didn't eat anything in a while…

"Pyrrha!" Jaune said with apparent relief on his face. He then rushed to her and hugged her tightly as though he was afraid that she might disappear. Pyrrha can only squeak in surprise. But she didn't dislike it…

"You're awake! Are you feeling okay!?" Jaune eventually broke the hug and looked over her worriedly.

"I'm fine, Jaune," Pyrrha replied. Although she was a bit disappointed from not being able to hug Jaune a bit longer… "Although, it seems that I won't be able to stand up yet," she said while glancing at her right heel.

"The doctor said that it would take a few weeks for your heel to get better completely. So don't try to force yourself on it, okay?" Jaune scolded her in worry.

Feelings of joy and guilt filled Pyrrha right now. She was glad that she was still alive, able to see her teammates and friends again. But she felt guilty that she had forced Jaune away, who was thrown into despair by her actions. Even now, she could see in those eyes that Jaune still hasn't gotten over the fact that her life was almost forfeited that night.

"Jaune…I'm sorry…" Pyrrha said softly to him. Tears started to form in her eyes. _Am I destined to be alone in carrying the faith of others in me?_

Jaune didn't say anything to her, but he simply wiped the tears from her eyes with his hand. Pyrrha blinked in surprise at his gesture.

"P-Pyrrha…I'm just glad that you are okay," Jaune said to her, putting his hand over hers. Pyrrha nearly flinched in surprise, but managed to keep her composure in front of him. This scene reminded her of another tender moment that they had before.

"But Pyrrha, it doesn't mean that I'm not mad at you. I was scared that you would have died by fighting on your own. We are partners, aren't we?" Jaune said determinately to her.

"I know…" Pyrrha said sadly. She knew that she had done something wrong to Jaune, but she didn't want him to get hurt in the fight. "I'm sorry…"

"Nevermind that. I am just glad that you are still alive." Jaune dismissed her apology. "I guess… I'm just trying to say that…, I will be there for you. You are not alone in this, Pyrrha."

Pyrrha could only laugh to herself inwardly. She was someone who wanted to help Jaune to achieve his dream as a t huntsman, but refused help from someone she cared a lot about. She, who didn't wanted to be alone, but was willing to sacrifice herself if it meant saving her close ones. But now she could see that she was actually selfish in not considering her friends' feelings in that regard…

"Jaune, if you don't mind me asking, what happened to Beacon and Vale?" Pyrrha asked after remembering why she wanted to get up. "Are our friends okay right now?"

"Vale is under control right now. Beacon, I think it would take a bit longer to recover but they say that it would be retaken and rebuilt soon," Jaune answered her. "As for our friends, Ren and Nora are currently out to get a few things in the city right now. They should be back in a few hours. I think Team RWBY is okay, but their team members seemed to be currently separated from what I heard last time. And also Ozpin is now declared missing, but as we know he might as well be gone…" Jaune trailed off.

_Professor Ozpin… _Pyrrha thought sadly.

"Jaune, what had exactly happened to me? I don't exactly remember when I blacked out." Pyrrha then asked him confusingly. There was a gap between her memories, but she was sure that Cinder had the upper hand against her in the fight. But she was still here alive…

"I don't know the exact details, but Weiss said that Ruby and someone else saved your life from that woman," Jaune said, with a venomous tone at the end. His right fist was notably clenched tight and shaking a bit. It was expected from him, as losing a partner is not something any huntsman would look forward to. But it seems like his anger is getting the best of him.

"Jaune…it is okay. I'm still here." Pyrrha attempted to comfort him. She placed her other hand over his. Jaune then noticed this and his face turned a bit red. But he said nothing afterwards.

* * *

Silence was the only thing between them for a moment. Pyrrha enjoyed the rare moment of peace she had in her life. But Jaune eventually broke it.

"Um…, P-Pyrrha…Do you mind if I ask you something?" Jaune asked her while scratching his face nervously with his index finger.

Pyrrha wasn't sure what he wanted to know. Was it about what happen under the vault or what secrets she was hiding before? But it didn't matter to her anymore at this point. She tried to keep her secrets from them and the pressure of the responsibility ended up nearly destroying her. She won't hide anything from her friends and teammates anymore. "I don't mind. What do you want to know?" Pyrrha replied.

"O-okay. Um…, do you like me, Pyrrha? I mean, like-like me?" Jaune stammered in embarrassment. His cheeks turned apple-red.

Pyrrha's mind then blanked out…

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

_What…_

WHAT?! Pyrrha's eyes were swirling around and her head suddenly felt dizzy at that particular statement. She could only manage to stammer back. "W-What do you mean, J-Jaune?"

"I-I mean, you gave me a k-kiss before you left me behind…" Jaune could only explain to her meekly.

…

…

…

_Ohhhhhh….that time. _

Pyrrha could feel her own cheeks heating up as a particular memory of her kissing Jaune rose up in her mind. She was prepared for the likely possibility that she might die, so she decided to go through it without any regrets in her life. But Pyrrha is now wishing she could find a hole that she could bury herself into. What was she thinking at that time?!

Seeing that Pyrrha was staying silent, Jaune could only assume her answer was negative. "Y-You don't like me that way, then…?"

"No, Jaune! I really do like you that way!" Pyrrha shouted out, surprising herself in her assertive answer. Her face only turned a deeper shade of red at her outburst.

_I blame my mouth for this._

"W-Why? Why me? W-What do you see in me?" Jaune asked her in bewilderment.

Why? Pyrrha can only answer that question with the one in her heart. "It is not just because you treated me like anyone else. Nor it was just because I admired you for your strong spirit or you're caring for others. It was simply because being with you makes me _happier than anything else_. So does it surprise you that I fell in love with you?"

Jaune was stunned by her simple explanation. _But love doesn't need reason…_

"But I don't think I am that worthy for you…" Jaune eventually denied in a depreciatory tone.

"You don't have to decide if you are worthy for me or not!" Pyrrha raised her voice at him. She was tired of being held up in a pedestal by others. She was tired of having to keep her feelings to herself. She was tired of fighting an evil Maiden by herself. She was hungry. So it was expected that she would eventually snap…

Jaune flinched from her unintended anger and Pyrrha immediately felt guilty again.

Pyrrha then took another deep breath to calm down. She didn't want to antagonize Jaune. She had already decided to go for the direct approach with him because as much as she loved him, he can be as dense as a rock…

_So she pound it into him even more for good measure._

"I think…, you're the kind of guy I wish to have in my life, no matter how you deny my words. So I guess… the true question is am I someone you wish to be always there for you?" Pyrrha told him with certain strength in her voice.

Her heartbeat rose quickly in anticipation for his answer. Will he say yes?

For a few moments, silence only met her answer. Then Jaune opened his mouth to reply.

"I don't know…" Jaune finally answered. Her heart sank. Was she not good enough for him?

"That doesn't mean I don't like you!" Jaune corrected himself hastily, waving his hands in the air. Pyrrha's eyes widen at his confession. _Really? I thought he had only eyes for Weiss, though…_

"I do think that you are attractive and you are someone that I trust the most. But your feelings… it is just a bit too sudden for me. A-And I don't think I am yet worthy enough to be with you now, no matter what you think…." Jaune explained to her as he looked down to his feet.

"Oh…" Pyrrha could only reply to that answer. It wasn't a definitely no, but it wasn't something certain between them. But Jaune wasn't finish talking yet…

"…I-I'm sorry that I didn't notice your feelings for me before… B-But it doesn't mean that we can't try now! My dad always said that you don't get to choose who or when you meet. However, you do get to choose who you hold onto." Jaune said as he looked into Pyrrha's eyes seriously. "At least that what he said when he first met my mom and fell in love with her in the end." Jaune then laughed sheepishly as he scratched the back of his head with his hand.

_Then does that mean…_

"So ummm… Pyrrha. Do you mind… trying things out between us?" Jaune said awkwardly to her.

…

…

…

Pyrrha was officially at cloud nine at those words.

"Yes… I would to like to … try things between us…," Pyrrha could only then whisper to him with happiness. "But are you sure about this…?"

"Hey, like I said, an Arc never goes back on his word," Jaune grinned at her in confidence.

For the first time ever, Pyrrha felt she wasn't fated to be alone anymore. Although there were things that she would have to explain later to her friends, the heavy burden that she was carrying was finally lifted from her heart. She was really happy. Then an unusual mischievous thought came to her mind. _So why not go all the way?_

She let a small smile curve her lips as her face then closed onto Jaune's. It was his turn to squeak as she made contact with him. It was so much better than the first time.

_Arkos finally sailed out to an uncharted future._

_Just then, the Nora Nation attacked from the shadows. It was the most embarrassing memory Pyrrha would ever have in her entire life. But it could be said this was also the day when she finally stepped forward in a long time as a person._

* * *

**So here is the Pyrrha interlude that I wanted to write about before getting back to the main storyline. I have no experience writing anything about romance, but I think I did okay for a novice. I always wondered what will happen to the Arkos relationship if Pyrrha did managed to live past the Battle of Beacon. **

**I decided to go for Pyrrha interlude since it will be a while before we get to see the rest of Team RWBY and Team JNPR in the storyline. There will be a lot more opportunities for Weiss interlude later. And I decided that Pyrrha interlude would be more interesting to write about since it is new territory to explore…**

**A side note: I am a bit new to the RWBY shipping community, but which shipping of characters do you support the most and why? I am just a bit curious to see what people around here like and I would really appreciate some polite and thoughtful opinions. But no flaming wars, please… **

**If you like my writing, then please support me by following or favoriting me, the author!**


	9. Ch 6: A Strange Saber

**I do not own RWBY or Fate universes. Here is a new chapter. We are back to the main storyline now.**

* * *

**Chapter Six: A Strange Saber**

* * *

So we have finally made it to end of the Battle of Beacon. I have saved everyone that I have planned to save, killed a giant Grimm in an epic manner, forced the main enemies to retreat, and RWBY canon officially went to hell. So everything should have gone right, then? Unfortunately, things were not as simple as they seemed. There were still elements that I could not have affected enough in the short time that I was here.

Many people still died. There were numerous Grimm, White Fang members, and rogue androids everywhere that night. And so there were just as many victims, both civilians and huntsmen that died in the line of fire. Those people who haven't died mourned for their close ones who did die that night. I was not foolish enough to believe that I could have saved everyone that night by myself, even if I went all out. I was not Superman in that regard. Besides, it was already too late for me to do something significant as Cinder and her group were already working up to that point for months already.

The kingdoms are now at odds with each other. While Vale was still standing, the people are still scared or mistrustful of each other due to Cinder's CCT announcement and the events that had transpired in the Vytal Tournament Finals. Atlas' rogue androids hasn't helped the tension that much either. War could be eminent because the Vytal Festival, a symbol of peace, was disrupted in such a way. As I arrived after the fact happened, means that I had no effect on that part of the canon.

Structurally, Vale was still struggling despite getting through the worst of it. Rubble still decorated the streets. Grimm were still there, though in much smaller numbers and scattered throughout the city. Communication outside the kingdoms was non-existent, meaning no information can come or exit the kingdom. No communication meant coordination over outside aid and rebuilding was disrupted or slowed down in Vale. There were some Huntsmen recalled to Vale to aid the city right now despite of communication problems, but that meant that more villages in the kingdom were now less protected from the attacks of Grimm. And the city of Vale was probably not the only one dealing with the Grimm, as that last bit of news of Vale probably invoked negative emotions everywhere in Remnant. I hate to admit this, but Cinder and her group were pretty intelligent to control the communications in their first strike against Ozpin.

But there was some good news, despite of the _grimm_ situation. Heh…

For one, I did a lot in terms changing the canon for the better. Pyrrha was still alive due to Ruby's more timely intervention and she is currently at the hospital being treated for her injuries. I have heard various rumors that the rest of Team JNPR was there with her and Jaune stayed by her side the most. I am guessing there might be _something_ there, but I am afraid this is just all speculation at this point. But I am pretty sure that she would recover quickly to join Ruby and the others on their journey to Haven Academy for answers.

Yang didn't lose her arm, so she should get better at least physically faster. In terms of her mental state, I cannot predict what would happen to her. It is up to fate at that point. As for whether she would be joining Ruby and the rest of her friends on their journey to Haven is an unknown for me. Plus the fact that whether Yang would even meet her mother, Raven, is also uncertain at this point.

And a lot of Grimm had died by my hand, which I felt was pretty insignificant in the long run. But I also killed off the Grimm Wyvern, so there wouldn't be more Grimm that would be spawned and attracted to Beacon, making it significantly easier for the Vale huntsmen and huntresses to recapture and rebuild it. In fact, the last thing I heard was that they were able to able to at least create a perimeter as a jump point to clear Beacon itself. It wouldn't be that long till they are able to rebuild it soon. I believe that is a good thing because I have the strangest feeling that I will come back here eventually.

I also drove off the main enemies into retreat, but I wasn't really focused on trying to kill them in the first place. Why? Adam still had some relevance to the plot in Menagerie, where Blake will be going there. Out of the four girls, I expect that my presence had the least effect on her and I don't want to accidentally cause more ripples in her intended path. She plays a large role in uniting the Faunus to go to Haven Academy in order to stop Adam and the White Fang. It may be callous of me to let go someone who will probably kill more people later, but I simply don't want to make things hard on myself with more unknowns. And I do have other points to worry about…

And while I would like to kill Cinder because she had the potential to become a danger to Weiss and her friends from the show's trend, I refrained myself for one good reason. Cinder is the Fall Maiden right now, and if she did die, I don't know where that power will go. If it is to one of her allies, like Emerald, it will still be in the enemy's hands regardless. If it is to one of our allies, like Pyrrha, then I would not do that as it would only paint a huge target on their backs. And if it is to an unknown person, then we would be racing against Salem's faction to find her first. And I don't like being sent on wild goose chase, so I am letting Cinder live for certainty matters. Honestly, that power is more like a burden than a blessing in how it is passed on.

_Damn it, Ozpin. Why do you always like to make things more complicated than they need to be?_

Then again, _this was same man_ who decided that launch platforms, eye contact, and matching chess pieces were the best way to make teams of four. I seriously don't understand this world…

Still, while there were inevitable changes from my actions, there were some things that I can't really change for the RWBY cast. Blake still ran away from her team, presumably to Menagerie. Yang is probably still depressed from the numerous events that happened like Penny's death, Blake's exit, her fight with Mercury, and fear of Adam. Ruby is probably unconscious for a few days now from her stunt on the tower.

And as for my Master? Well, Weiss is currently being escorted in her father's airship to Atlas, after her father, Jacques Schnee, decided that Vale (and Beacon) wasn't a safe place for the current SDC heiress. I imagine it was more protecting Weiss for the company image than caring for Weiss as a daughter. A pretty frosty man, I should say.

Weiss was understandably reluctant to leave Beacon and her friends behind, but she went along with her father's wishes anyway. Still, I think it would be because she felt that she had no choice in the matter as her father would have forced her anyways if she had refused instead. On the other hand, if her father decided to force his hand on her, I would not just stand by idly…

Anyways, I couldn't let my cute Master leave me, so I followed her to Atlas. And that is how I ended up being a stowaway in an airship cargo hold. Some story, huh?

But I was not only pondering on the changes in canon from my interference, but also thinking about the future events that may or may not happen.

While Weiss surprisingly did not say much about my involvement in the events, I still knew that Cinder would probably tell Salem everything about me. But all that I showed was that I was very resistant to her magic, that I have wind power indicating that I could probably use magic, and that I was strong enough to take down a Grimm Wyvern on my own. While it may seem like that I showed more than necessary, I still had my hood on that hid my facial identity and that I never told her my name. I also have not used all of my abilities to my full potential. Especially my more powerful Noble Phantasms.

Speaking of Noble Phantasms, my body has fully recovered since my first usage of Invisible Air, thanks to Avalon and plenty of rest from combat. I think that I could safely use Invisible Air several times now without straining my body so much as before. In fact, I think some of my abilities have improved slightly since I last checked my stat sheet.

* * *

**Stats Sheet of Saber (2)**

**True Name: Gray Pendragon**

**Master: Weiss Schnee**

**Gender: Male**

**Height: 178 cm**

**Weight: 70 kg**

**Alignment: True Neutral**

**Class: Saber**

**Strength: B+**

**Endurance: C**

**Agility: C+**

**Magic: A**

**Luck: A**

**Noble Phantasm: C-EX**

**Class Skills**

**Magic Resistance: B**

**Riding: B**

**Personal Skills**

**Mana Burst: A**

**Charisma: B**

**Instinct: B**

**?**

**?**

**Noble Phantasms**

**Invisible Air (Anti-Unit): C**

**Excalibur (Anti-Fortress): A++**

**Avalon (Barrier): EX**

**?**

**Servant Evaluation: Gray Pendragon is a Servant that has gained the abilities of Saber Class Servant Artoria Pendragon. His current Master is Weiss Schnee. However, due to being fused together for the first time, some of the stats on this sheet do not reflect the true potential of Gray Pendragon and may have hidden stats as well. Other stats have been deteriorated from Artoria at her prime due to various reasons, but can be restored over time. Avalon was included as it was returned to Artoria Pendragon as a Servant. Gray Pendragon is someone who is willing to help others out, but he may struggle between what is right and what is best. He takes rather strange advantages whenever he can, whether it is pretending to be an Assassin with his spiritual form or using his Charisma to avoid long explanations. He supposedly doesn't like attracting attention, but fails to do so a lot. He strives to prepare and fight towards to certain victory, yet his methods can be a bit...unorthodox. Is he really a knight…? He also has a strange habit of talking to no one in his head for some reason... In conclusion, Gray is a true enigma of a Servant.**

* * *

My stat sheet now registered Weiss as my current Master and that a few of my stats have grown a bit. My strength stat had grown from B to B+-Rank, which I attributed to my feats of strength I performed in battle. Surprisingly, my Luck Stat has grown a full rank up to A-Rank, which I didn't know was possible to improve. But maybe it was because I was extremely lucky quite a few times or that I managed to change the plot to my favor.

The Servant evaluation has changed quite a bit, which included on the type of character that I was. But what is up with this Servant Evaluation?! "…a true enigma of a Servant," I read out the last line aloud. My right eye was twitching in annoyance.

"What makes me such a strange Servant?!" I grumbled quietly about this unfair evaluation.

Turning my thoughts about the major consequences, I then realized something.

Cinder has essentially failed to completely destroy Beacon and that she is also probably injured from Ruby's stunt. This means Salem will have a harder time searching for the Relic of Choice there without the Grimm Wyvern stationed there, not that it would really matter since Ozpin was somehow really good at hiding that particular relic. That was one thing Ozpin did right at least. Salem also doesn't seem to have the resources to gain the same opportunity as before with Cinder out of commission for now.

_Till Haven Academy,_ I thought grimly to myself. I don't know what will happen, but it probably won't be as smooth for the heroes as it did in Volume 5. On the other hand, I am planning to be there to help them out.

I had already made a few plans and ideas of what to do in the possible futures that I mapped out so far. I had already made plans to help out Weiss become stronger than she was canonically, and how to improve myself with Saber's available skillset. And I even tried out all of the different types of Servant clothing styles.

Yep, I have my own personal wardrobe filled with Saberface attire. It was something unique to me that other servants didn't even have normally. Why I have this function I don't really know, but I am not saying that I don't want it. It could come in handy later.

Currently, I was wearing something similar to the Saber Prototype casual clothing. I wore a long black coat with a blue shirt underneath. I wore dark black jeans and black shoes. It was simple, but I looked pretty good and not out of place in a modern setting.

I know that Weiss has not yet taken a good look at my face, so I plan to show up in my original armor and reveal my face first before any explanations. On the other hand, walking around in public with a full-suit of armor is not the best idea if I wanted to avoid attention. While there are many huntsman and huntresses that wear unique armor and/or colorful clothing, I doubt that anyone would find many people with a full heavy set of armor and elaborate clothing to boot. I would stand out like a sore thumb in a crowd, along with my B-Rank Charisma aura. And at least I am wearing something that I would consider normal in such a strange world.

_Normal, what a funny word in my situation._

Shaking off my depressing thoughts, I started to ponder upon the serious questions that I had avoided till now. _Who or what is the alien threat am I supposed to fight against in this world? And how come I cannot find any strange occurrences about it yet? Why have I been chosen to fight? Why have I gain this power? Why me?_

Then the speaker above me crackled, interrupting my thought process. A monotone voice rang out. "This is your pilot, we are approaching Atlas in a few minutes. Passengers, please buckle up and prepare for the landing. Thank you."

I smiled at the announcement. At least things would get rolling now. _It is time to move out. _I thought as I put on my armor once more.

* * *

I was silent. I just waited for the airship to land onto the private helipad near the Schnee mansion, where Weiss and her father exited from the vehicle. I quietly followed them as I kept track on my Master's blue-white soul that had little snowflakes swirling around it. It was something intriguing to look at, just like the other souls that I saw in the rest of Team RWBY. I wonder if there was something special about them that I didn't know already…

They walked toward a certain person which I believe was their butler, who was apparently waiting for their arrival. I think his name was Klein, as I remembered from the show itself. Klein greeted the two's arrival, where then he led Weiss through the mansion while carrying her luggage with him. I followed them through the mansion, and noticed one crucial thing about it.

_The mansion was cold_.

It wasn't cold as in temperature-wise. It was cold because there weren't really any people inside this spacious mansion, other than a few servants. None of the warmth that I would expect existed if a happy family was living here. I thought I saw another person with white hair from the upstairs balcony, but when I glanced up again, there was no one there. _Is this where Weiss has been living there for the majority of her life? _I wondered as I looked around. There was some elaborate architecture and paintings as someone attempted to give the mansion some life, but it was still cold… I could imagine why Weiss wanted to escape from this mansion in the first place. It was more like a cold prison than a warm home.

_As expected, the show's depiction does not give this world justice._

I eventually followed Weiss and Klein into her room, where Klein placed her briefcase onto her bed, said a few words to her, and left afterwards after showing his respects. Weiss then sighed quietly to herself. She lay onto her bed in exhaustion, burying her face into her pillow. I waited around for a few seconds before I could confirm that there was no one else nearby to hear us talk.

This was about the time that I decided to reveal myself to her.

"Master," I said as I materialized next to her. I tried very hard not to startle her.

I failed. Badly.

"GGGaaaaaahhhhhhh!" Weiss shouted out in surprise. She rolled around in an attempt to move out of her bed (and perhaps prepare for a sudden attack). And she then promptly planted her face onto the floor.

_Why does this particular scene seem so familiar to me?_

* * *

**So we have reached the end of this chapter. This chapter is mostly transition and explanations before preceding the awaited conversation between Gray and Weiss.**

**Gray does have a wardrobe that has all versions of Saberface attire. As how he was able to do this when other servants don't have such a luxury, you can just attribute this to something unique to Gray. It is not on his stat sheet for it is not something like a Noble Phantasm or Skill. This ability is about the same level of importance as Artoria's Magic armor. I wanted to give more clothing options to Gray while he is on Remnant. And why I expanded the options to all Saberfaces instead of just strictly King Arthur versions? Because I can.**

**Gray's Stat Sheet will change and show his growth over time. He will improve even more than now, but that does not mean he will be an OP character overnight. He will have obstacles in his way, both physically and mentally. As for worthy opponents, that will be another time much, much later… And yes, Gray is quite the unique Servant.**

**On a side note: What types of Saberface attire would you like to see Gray wear in Remnant? Note that they will all be male versions.**

**If you like this story and want to know more, then please favorite or follow this story. Also, please leave a review if you can.**


	10. Ch 7: Questions Asked By Master

**I do not own the RWBY or Fate universes. This chapter will involve more switching perspectives between Gray and Weiss, but I made it easier to read by dividing it into sections.**

* * *

**Chapter Seven: Questions Asked By Master**

* * *

Weiss decided the cold marble floor wasn't the best thing to be kissing right now.

She was alarmed by the sudden unfamiliar voice in her bedroom as she let her guard down when Klein left. An intruder. Was it an assassin that snuck into the mansion? She tried to scramble into fighting position beforehand, but she was now caught in such an embarrassing position. Winter would have berated her for her carelessness if she ever saw this scene.

Focus, Weiss…

Weiss groaned as she quickly got up onto her feet. Surprisingly, the intruder didn't attempt to move during her vulnerable state. Was the intruder waiting for something? She then took up a guarded stance and glanced at the supposed intruder warily.

A familiar looking armored figure in blue entered her vision and she opened her mouth in shock.

* * *

"YOU!"

"Yes, it is I," I answered. My current thoughts? This is going to be a long day…

"You! What are you doing here?!" Weiss pointed her finger at me, still recovering from her shock. Then she shook her head.

"Never mind that, you still owe me an explanation after all what has happened!" Weiss demanded in a dignified tone.

"Yes, I am afraid I do owe you an explanation. However, why don't you first take a seat? This will be a long conversation and I have other important things to discuss with you as well," I answered seriously as I picked up a nearby chair from the room. I placed it near Weiss and gestured her to take a seat.

Weiss seemed at least understood that I was going to talk to her and explain some things that she hadn't quite understood that night. So she complied with my request and sat down on the chair, her hands resting upon another. She looked at me expectantly for answers.

Then I took off my hood, revealing my face for the first time. Looking at Weiss, it seems that she was surprised to see my face like this, perhaps because I looked a bit younger than she expected? As far as I knew, Saber was only about 14-15 years old physically, even though her age was much older than she looked, due to her Noble Phantasms (previously Caliburn and Avalon) preventing her body from aging any more.

At least I am proud to say I am not that short in stature…

* * *

_I didn't expect for him to look so young…_

_He doesn't look that much older than Ruby, for crying out loud!_

_And he is not so bad-looking either…, _Weiss thought. Weiss turned her head away, trying not to give away the sudden blush on her cheeks. She shook her head from those irrelevant thoughts and berated herself.

_Focus, Weiss! You are not supposed to be checking him out!_ She had questions that needed to be answered. Weiss cleared her throat to ask her first question.

"First of all, who are you?"

"You may call me Saber," he answered. Weiss's eye twitched in response. She wasn't expecting such a concise and vague answer. But maybe she was asking the wrong questions.

"Then what are you?" Weiss then asked.

"I am a Servant."

Weiss blinked at that statement. She knew that he was not talking about being a servant like Klein. He didn't portray himself as servile despite of his words and he was obviously more dressed for combat than cleaning. Plus… he was way too annoying to be one in the first place. Perhaps he is talking about a servant as a different title or term instead…?

"What is a Servant?" Weiss inquired afterwards.

* * *

Good question. Perhaps we might get along better than I would have thought.

"Servants are spirits that are made into special familiars or summons of the highest rank, who are bound to a Master. In this case, I am a Servant to you, Master." I answered.

"Then…, what makes Servants like you special then? I haven't seen any summon like you, you look so… human," Weiss wondered out loud. Not surprising, since Remnant hasn't seen any Servants till I came around.

"Servants can be considered representations of powerful beings called Heroic Spirits, which are spirits of heroes who have achieved notable deeds in life after their deaths. In my case, I am a representation of one of the greatest knights," I replied. I didn't bother go into the details about my actual circumstances, because even I don't know all of the answers.

"Heroes? Like the ones in the stories?" Weiss skeptically asked me.

"Yes, heroes did and will continue to exist in the past, present and future. They are very powerful beings, beyond even the capabilities of Huntsmen themselves. A successful summoning of a Heroic Spirit can be considered miraculous in any case," I answered. I was not joking in the fact that summoning Heroic Spirits can be miraculous as it takes a lot of energy to just summon by oneself without any external force like the Holy Grail.

"Then how did I summon you? I am sure that I did not try to summon you with my glyphs that night," Weiss frowned in thought.

"You did not, Master. I simply answered your call for help and came here through extraordinary circumstances that I cannot explain very well myself. But I guess I can give you one word that might give an answer. Magic," I said with a small smile.

"Magic. Like from the fairy tales? You got to be joking here." Weiss said with a deadpan tone.

"I am not jesting, Master. Magic does exist. Fairy tales do have some basis in real life. They may change or not tell all of the events accurately, but they have at least some truth to them," I replied to her apparent skepticism. But I also understood that the only way she will believe me is to show her magic. So I did.

I immediately dismissed my armor and my chosen casual clothing materialized in its place. Next, I turned into my spirit form, walked a few steps to my left, and reappeared there as though I teleported. I then released Invisible Air partially in the palm of my hand, which was a new trick that I practiced during the trip. The air there became visibly distorted as the wind swirled around in my palm. Nothing too fancy, but it is enough to get my point across.

"Are you convinced now? Just as you know, none of those abilities that I have showed you are the use of Dust or Semblance," I asked as I eventually dissipated the Noble Phantasm in my hand. Weiss didn't speak as she just gaped at me like I was an alien. Maybe that demonstration was a bit too much for her…?

"H-how… did you do all of that?" Weiss could only ask me in shock after seeing my performance.

"All of my abilities that you have seen and my summoning were due to magic in some way, Master," I replied truthfully.

"Unbelievable… Magic can't be real. But what could have explained what I saw…? No Dust or Semblance can explain that… Just what have I gotten into?" Weiss muttered under her breath.

I smirked at her apparent disbelief. Weiss, you have already gotten into this mess the moment that you decided to go to Beacon and joined Team RWBY. In fact, you were already in this mess ever since a man dreamed of four girls wearing different colors…

"Now you believe me?" I said to her.

"I'm afraid that I don't have any other explanation after what you showed me. I'm just a bit… overwhelmed by all this," Weiss confessed to me.

"That is fine, Master. Do you perhaps have other questions to ask about me?"

"Besides the idea of magic being real, you keep calling me Master, why?" Weiss inquired curiously after a moment of thought.

"I call you Master, not just because you are the one who has summoned me to this world, but there is a bond that now exists between us," I replied.

"A bond?"

"Yes, and those markings on back of your hand are proof as well," I pointed out.

"Markings?" Weiss said confusingly. "Wait, do you mean these!?"

Weiss raised her left hand, where I finally noticed she was wearing a white glove. Weiss took it off, exposing the blue-white command seals on the back of the hand. I silently approve of her caution on hiding that. It would undoubtedly attract unwanted attention if exposed.

"Are you saying that you are responsible for these? Where did these markings come from?! How come I didn't notice these before I summoned you?!" Weiss asked erratically as she thrust out her left hand in front of my face.

I answered her calmly. "Those are Command Seals, and they are what tie us together, Master,"

"Command... Seals?" Weiss said with a confused look.

"Command Seals or also known as Command Spells, are three magic marks that a Master has over a Servant in their contract. These marks allow the Master to make any absolute commands that the Servant must follow, even if they do not wish to. For example, you could command me to attack a specific person if you wish me, too. Another example is that you can make me block a certain attack and I will do it. You can even order me to die if you wish, Master."

"What?! That's crazy! Who would use such things?!" Weiss cried out, her right hand clutching on the back of her left. She was probably in disbelief that this was essentially a master-slave contract. Or the fact that she horrified that she had the ability to kill me if she wished to. But nonetheless it tells me that she is a caring person who does not disregard other lives callously, in spite of carrying the image of a cold Schnee. It reassures me that my Master is someone that I can get along with at least. Saber had much worse experiences with Kiritsugu as her Master in the Fourth Holy Grail War.

"It is because they are powerful magic spells. Master, these may be powerful spells in making a person obey someone, but I believe that they are useful when used right with the Servant's consent. For example, you can order me to go to a specific location, such as yourself, and I can teleport to your side even when I do not have such an ability to do so. Orders such as strengthening my attacks and healing me instantly are also examples of good usage of Command Seals," I replied.

"However, there are few warnings about the usage of Command Seals. You should focus on giving specific, short commands as more vague and long-lasting orders do not have the power to follow through. Also, you can only effectively use two Command Seals over the period of my summoning as using three command seals will break the contract and cause me to fade away from this world." I said as I finished my explanation. But I thought about something peculiar. Why are her Command Seals blue-white instead of the usual red? Are they special or something?

"Still, why aren't you bothered by this?!" Weiss then interrupted my thoughts. Weiss was probably thinking that no one would be happy in this type of situation. It is common sense that no one would want to be in that position. But I wasn't exactly normal in that sense.

"Nope, because I believe that you are good person who wouldn't treat me badly." I firmly answered. It is the truth that I believe in, partly from what I saw so far and from the show itself. Weiss can appear to be cold at times, but she is genuinely a nice person once you get to know her better. She is a tsundere character in that sense…

"…" Weiss didn't have anything to say after that. I imagine that she was stunned by my simple, yet truthful answer.

"There are a few more things that you need to know about us as a Servant and Master. For one, we can simply talk to each other mentally through our bond." I spoke up afterwards.

"What?!"

"Yes, you heard me right. Just focus on the bond between us and speak your mind out. I would not be able to read your thoughts without your intention. Try it out," I suggested.

* * *

Weiss paused in thought. Speak though the bond between them? What does that mean? Then she glanced at her command seals, which apparently marked her as his Master. Maybe she should focus on that?

Weiss stared at her left hand in concentration and tried to send a mental message. "_Um, can you hear me now, Saber?"_

_"Yes, Master. I can hear you fine," _His voice echoed amusingly in her head.

_"Wow… This is something else entirely,"_ Weiss was slightly shocked at this. While the Schnee summoning did allow the summoner to have a connection with their summons, this ability seemed to be at a more…intimate level.

_"I know, right? Oh, by the way, you don't have to glare at the command seals to talk to me."_

Weiss started stuttering in embarrassment as the idiot annoyingly smiled at her. What nerve does he have to tease her like this…! That idiot!

* * *

Aside from Weiss's amusing antics, I was genuinely surprised how she managed to do this easily. Normally, a magus would have a much easier time doing this as they have the magecraft abilities and practice to do so. Maybe there is something special going on here?

"It seems you are learning this quickly. Next, thing I want to talk about is that bond between us allows you, the Master to provide me the energy that I need to perform my abilities and stay in this plane of existence." I eventually said after our short mental conversation.

"Energy? Like Aura?"

"Well, that seems to be the case here. Even though normally a Servant would take mana or magical energy as their source of power, your aura is a suitable substitute for me. You are also lucky that you have summoned me as that I have my own large pool of magical reserves myself. Otherwise, you may have been struggling to give sufficient energy to me."

"Really…, are you okay right now?" Weiss asked me concernedly.

"It is not a problem right now. As long as I don't use my more taxing abilities, I don't need to draw a large amount from you. I also can change myself to my spiritual form, which makes me invisible as you know and lowers my overall energy expenditures," I assuaged her worries.

"Lastly, Saber is not really my true name. It is a type of class that I fall under," I added.

"Class?"

"Yes, typically Servants fall under the seven main classes. Saber, the Servant of the Sword. Lancer, the Servant of the Lance. Archer, the Servant of the Bow. Rider, the Servant of the Mount. Caster, the Servant of Sorcery and Spells. Assassin, the Servant of Assassination. Berserker, the Servant of Berserk Rage," I listed them out. "It is not necessary for you to know all of these Servant classes in detail, but if you wish to know more about them, then you can ask me at another time."

From my knowledge, Weiss has a tendency to take in every bit of information that she can learn, even if it is not relevant to her path of a huntress. But it is safer to know things than be ignorant in this world, I suppose.

But I did give her a brief explanation about my specific class. "Saber is the one of the three Knight Classes. Saber-Class Servants are not only the wielders of the sword, but also boast best overall physical and combat abilities amongst the seven. I was not kidding when I said that you were lucky to summon me. Even if you haven't summoned a Saber, having a strong Servant on your side gives you a massive advantage in battle. There aren't many beings that are able to match or surpass them."

"Okay, but then…what is your real name?" Weiss asked. Ah, this question…

"Well, I prefer not to be called by my True Name in public. I do have my reasons about that. But you may call me Gray Pendragon," I eventually answered her after some thought. While I won't suffer from the usual consequences of revealing one's True Name, I prefer to keep my True Name and Class name separate for different situations. But it should be fine if Weiss knows as she seems capable enough to keep important secrets. I am giving her full trust on that part.

* * *

"Gray. Gray Pendragon," Weiss tested the name out in her mouth. She didn't know why, but she felt the name to be more appropriate for the person in front of her. It felt more…personal.

"If you wish, you can call me Gray privately. But I request that you keep my True Name just a secret between the two of us for now," Gray casually spoke out to her.

"T-then I don't wish you call me Master. If you are going to call me by something, then call me by my actual name. My name is Weiss," Weiss replied in turn. She didn't know why she trusted this person because there were still some things that she didn't understand fully about him. But her heart told her that she can trust him for some reason. And his smile he showed afterwards was genuine. Maybe things aren't looking as bad for her as they seem…

* * *

"Very well, Weiss," I said with a soft smile. It makes me a bit glad to see she hasn't lost that proud spirit of hers. It wouldn't be Weiss if she didn't have any pride in herself. While I haven't yet explained everything that could be useful so far and I still haven't gotten the gist of why I was here in Remnant, I felt things would be alright between us.

_After all, we both do want to help people despite what we say._

* * *

**You could say that this is part one of the conversations between Gray and Weiss. It is more how they are getting along with each other so far and a brief explanation of Servants and Masters to Weiss. It may not be new to you guys who are familiar with the Fate franchise, but Gray knows that this is new and necessary information for Weiss to learn.**

**I know that the story seems to be slow for now, but I like to spend a little time building up the story in the transition between Volume 3 and Volumes 4. I think there was about 6-8 months of a time skip between Volume 3 and 4, so I would like to use that time to prepare… And for those of you who don't know anything about Saberfaces from the last chapter, they are basically characters that share a similar face as Artoria Pendragon.**

**A side note: Do you guys have any good ideas or thoughts on the abilities of the other three Relics? I may incorporate or derive from those ideas for future chapters. I would appreciate your help on this. **

**Thank you for reading so far and I hope to see more support for this story in the future.**


	11. Ch 8: Tales Told By Servant

**I do not own the RWBY or Fate universes. This chapter is 'part two' of the talk between Gray and Weiss.**

* * *

**Chapter Eight: Tales Told By Servant**

* * *

So far our conversation has been very fruitful. Weiss seemed to acknowledge much of my explanation as the truth and is now aware about our relationship as Master and Servant. On the other hand, I felt that we had some common understanding with each other and our personalities aren't incompatible with each other.

However, I was not done with her yet. There were some things that I needed to discuss with Weiss, particularly about the hidden mysteries in Remnant and my mission. I would not have an ignorant Master and I personally felt Weiss deserved to have some of my knowledge about Remnant. I won't be telling her everything in particular, but she would need to learn from me about the dangers she would be facing.

"Weiss," I said to grab her attention. "Although it is true that I did answer your summoning to aid you, I was also sent to this world on an important mission," I continued.

"An important mission?" Weiss asked with her eyebrow raised.

"I was sent here to save Remnant from future total annihilation," I summarized briefly.

"…W-WHAT!? T-total annihilation!? D-do you mean to tell me that this world will be destroyed in the future? Why?! How?!" Weiss bewilderedly questioned me in a shocked voice.

"Yes, but I do not know why or how this world will be destroyed. But I do know that there are hidden dangers in Remnant that could spell disaster for mankind, and that I was sent here to protect this world nonetheless," I replied truthfully. However, I neglected to say that the actual threat was foreign to this world because I don't have any knowledge about it myself. I am taking a wait and prepare approach on that problem, while keeping an eye out for any strange occurrences.

"H-hidden dangers? What hidden dangers?"

"Weiss, do you know why Beacon Academy was attacked that night?" I questioned her instead.

"…No. I know the White Fang and Grimm were part of the attack, but I don't really know why the perpetrators did such a horrible thing…" Weiss trailed off in a sad tone. It seems that she hasn't quite move on from that traumatizing event. I will have to be careful of what I should reveal to her.

"…Why did you ask?" Weiss questioned me after recomposing herself.

"I was privy to some knowledge about Remnant when I came here as a Servant."

That is a true statement. Even though all of my knowledge is based on a web show…

"Thus I know more than most people of Remnant of what is going on behind the shadows and much more, including the attack on Beacon Academy. I can reveal some of these secrets to you, but I cannot tell you where I got this knowledge specifically," I explained to her. I won't tell her about my source of knowledge specifically, but she would need to at least know what is going on in Remnant.

_For knowledge is power._

"So are you willing to hear what I have to say? If you do choose to listen, your own worldview will change forever…" I cautioned her to not make a rash decision.

"Well, it can't be more outlandish than what you have already told me so far. So I will still choose to listen to what you have to say," Weiss immediately answered.

Oh, right… I nearly forgot that Weiss would always pursuit any knowledge, even the ones that will not give her the answers she seeks at Beacon. I was a bit stupid to ask if she wanted to learn some of the secrets I know, but I was just making sure that she knows she cannot turn back.

"...Very well, then. But keep in mind that I will not tell you everything I know. And I can guarantee that the answers I will give you would lead you to make a very difficult choice in the end. But no matter what choice you decide on afterwards, just know that I will still follow your lead as your Servant," I warned her before proceeding to tell her my stories.

_The Tales of Remnant._

* * *

The first story I decided to tell her were about Four Maidens as there was already a well-known fairy tale about it. It is a suitable starting point to ease Weiss into the mystery side of Remnant. After confirming the original story with Weiss, I told her that the story was true and that the four Maiden's powers of magic have been passed along through cycle of life and death to a new successor to this very day. With this story, I told her the truth of the Maidens existence and their magic.

The next story that I chose was about the two Brother Gods that created Remnant itself, one of the light and one of the darkness. I told her that the God of Light created forces of life in Remnant, yet the God of Darkness created forces of destruction to wipe it away. Then I added that the God of Darkness eventually got frustrated of his brother's persistent creations and created the Grimm that we know in spite, creating friction between them. But I also told her how the Brother Gods eventually reconcile with each other by making their final creation together. Mankind. They gave mankind the gifts of knowledge, creation, destruction and choice. With this story, I gave her knowledge of the existence of Gods, creation of mankind and Grimm, and the creation of this world.

The next thing that I told her was about the relics, tools of great powers. These relics were the crystallized forms of mankind's gifts, created after the Brother Gods had left Remnant. If these relics were gathered together, then one would be able to recall the Brother Gods themselves. I told her that the relics were hidden under each of the four huntsmen academies in a locked vault, where only a specific Maiden can use her magic to open it. This was not a really a story, but the relics tied in the previous two stories together.

Then the next story was about the Silver-Eye Warriors. I had very little knowledge on this from what the show gave me, but I simply told Weiss that people with Silver Eyes were destined to become great warriors against the Creatures of Grimm. I added that all Silver-Eye Warriors have the special ability to petrify Grimm by emitting white light from their eyes. I noted that her partner, Ruby Rose, were amongst the very few that were still left in Remnant. I didn't give her a more detailed explanation as that particular information would more helpful for Ruby instead.

_Then I told her about Salem._

"There are many dangers for mankind. Grimm, bandits, Dust explosions, etc. But there is one enemy that I would say is the most dangerous of them all. There is someone who can control the Grimm with her will. That someone is Salem. She is neither human or Grimm, but something else entirely who has lived for eons. She resides in an unknown location, yet there are rumors that it is a place where the sunlight never shines there. She also possesses great magic; far beyond what the four Maidens possess combined. And she does not like mankind very much as you can imagine," I spoke out with an unfocused gaze. Salem is the one enemy I would fear to face if I didn't have my powers in the first place. Why? Because she really had nothing to lose.

I paused to let Weiss digest this information for a moment. Then I continued.

"…There is no doubt that Salem is an enemy of mankind. She is not weak or stupid. But what I believe is her most dangerous trait is not her magic power or her ability to control the Grimm. It is her ability to sway hearts of mankind toward a darker path with the promises of power and fulfillment of desires. That is why she has loyal allies that work under her. It is something that she is very good at and you must be always wary of. But I believe that she can be defeated. She is not infallible herself and has her own flaws."

Although I did leave out the part where Salem is immortal, I truly don't think that she cannot be defeated in the end. I don't want to demoralize Weiss at this point. She is too vulnerable right now and crushing any hope now would crush her spirit. I don't know if what I am doing is right, but I believe it is for the best. That particular topic is something that should be discussed with everyone later. It seems that Salem's goal is to collect all of the Maiden powers and the relics, but I don't know what she actually intends to do with them. Obviously, it is not something good for mankind.

Finally, I used these particular stories to help explain some of the events that happened at Beacon, including what had transpired to lead to its destruction. Salem wanted to get the Relic hidden underneath Beacon Academy. Cinder was her proxy that led the attack on Beacon and the one to steal the Fall Maiden powers. Ozpin's secret group was created to oppose Salem and her forces. Pyrrha was chosen by their group as a prospect Fall Maiden after the previous one was in a coma from Cinder's ambush. But they failed in the end. Cinder, and to some extent Salem, was responsible for creating the tensions between the kingdoms and unrest in Vale with the help of Roman Torchwick and the White Fang.

_And so how a small and honest soul became our only hope in the end. _

* * *

When I finished telling my stories at last, Weiss could only stare at me with so many emotions swirling in her light blue eyes. Fear. Sadness. Anger. Disbelief. Understanding. Uncertainty.

"Now that you have heard of what I have to tell you, do you wish to stop Salem and her forces?" I asked, breaking the silence between us.

"I…I think I need some time before making my decision," Weiss finally spoke out, hugging her knees for comfort.

"Understood. Please take some time to think. Just call me mentally when you made your decision," I gently replied. I knew that she needed some time for herself.

I was about to dematerialize and exit the room, but I paused for a moment.

"Weiss."

The white hair huntress didn't respond, but her rocking halted at my voice.

"I know this can be hard to take in and that the right path forward seems to be impossible for you," I paused. "Nor is the right path always the best path."

"_But you are not alone_. You have your friends, though currently far away, that you will meet sometime later and you are capable fighter of your own right. More than anything though, I am here to take on the challenges you will face as your sword," I declared to her with confidence. There are reasons why Saber was considered to be one of the best Servants of her class, and I intend to fulfill that expectation for Weiss. Otherwise, why would I be here for?

I soon left her room afterwards and awaited for her answer.

_I know she will do the right thing that she believes in._

* * *

So I waited.

…

…

…

And waited.

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

I was not quite sure how long I had been standing there for, but Weiss then eventually cracked her door open and poked her head out. It seems that she started to have a sense of where I was, since she started to glance toward my direction. She is really getting the hang of this Master-Servant thing.

_"Um, Gray?" _Weiss called out tentatively toward my direction.

_"I am here, Weiss,"_ I responded as I materialized in my position. I then walked inside her bedroom and Weiss closed the door quietly behind her.

"I've…come to a decision," Weiss said after some hesitation, but her voice grew stronger afterwards. "I'm going to stop Salem."

"May I ask why?" I questioned her curiously.

"While it is true that Salem sounds like an enemy I cannot win against, I have people that I really don't want to lose. I have made friends whom I would have never thought of making before I went to Beacon and I am…afraid of being alone again. Ruby would try to stop Salem without hesitation regardless of the odds, and what kind of partner will I be if I let her go by herself? Besides, you did promise me to fight by my side…right?" Weiss confessed her inner feelings to me.

"Of course, I already promised you on the night that we met for the first time," I replied without hesitation.

"Good. At least things don't look as bad if you are fighting with me. You do seem pretty strong after taking down that Grimm Wyvern," Weiss gave me a small smile.

"Well, I still think you are still underestimating me with that feat, but you are right that I am strong," I preened from her words. What? I like compliments! "I won't disappoint you in that regard."

"Of course, we are going to make some plans in the next six to eight months if we are to have a better fighting chance against our enemies," I said afterwards. Though I was confident, I will think it would prudent to get prepared for future events. It is time for planning!

"Plans? Six to eight months?" Weiss asked me curiously. Oops, I shouldn't give myself out knowing part of a future in Remnant.

"Yes. You and I will have to improve ourselves and prepare for the inevitable journey to stop Salem. But we need to make you stronger first, so I will help train you myself. You are a strong huntress, but you need know how to fight," I continued.

"Excuse me?!…I already know how to fight. I am a huntress for a reason," Weiss said to me.

"That may be true. But you do have a crippling weakness with your appalling stamina and endurance, compared to your teammates from what I observed during your fights. And you are also a bit too methodical in your attacks, which can leave you unable to adapt quickly in a dynamic fight. In other words, you haven't gotten enough real life-death combat experience yet," I noted to her, based on my knowledge of the show.

"That is… true," Weiss reluctantly agreed with me.

"Fortunately, I can somewhat provide that experience for you without seriously endangering your life in the process. In other words, I will be your sparring partner," I said with a small grin on my face. Why do I feel so excited about this?

Weiss's face started to pale.

"Oh, don't worry. I will hold back on my strength in my blows. I am more than aware about our differences in strength," I quickly tried to reassure her. "Although they will still be quite painful…"

Weiss's face went as white as a sheet at my statement. Oi, what is wrong with you! I did say I was going to hold back on you, right?!

I then coughed in my hand to grab her attention again and continued to list out her areas of improvement.

"You also haven't completed your own summoning glyphs yet and your clothing needs… some adjustments for fighting," I explained to Weiss.

"What about my clothing? This is a combat skirt!" Weiss ranted toward me, with her fists on her hips.

"The skirt and heels can stay, since you somehow keep your balance well in battle. But you could always use some light armor for protection on your torso and arm. You can't always rely on Aura to defend yourself," I reasoned.

"Aura is indeed useful in terms of protection. But it is finite resource and it cannot protect you from everything forever. Overreliance on your aura reserves will only invite carelessness in battle. And carelessness in battle will only lead to severe injury or death. And I wish to see you will live after each battle, Weiss," I sternly lectured her.

I have no objections against the skirt as Saber seemed to fight well with a dress with no problem. Heels are another thing, but I guess I just have to rely on anime logic on that one. Unless I wanted to argue with Weiss about changing her footwear fashion, I am avoiding that topic entirely. There are some things you cannot win against a woman. But I am putting my foot down on the issue of armor as she will be fighting in real battles instead of duels in the future. She will need the extra protection when I am not around to protect her.

Hmmm… that gives me a few ideas. Rather interesting ideas.

"I-I see…, I apologize for raising my voice at you," Weiss apologized as her cheeks gained a tinge of red from embarrassment.

"It is alright. I am just trying to make sure that you will survive no matter what, Weiss," I accepted her apology.

Then I continued with my thoughts. "We also need a private training room that we can practice in as well. And we would need to procure a few certain things that would be useful later. Those things may be more difficult to get, but it is possible with you, Weiss."

"Me?" Weiss blinked.

"Well, not you specifically," I answered eventually.

_I was more looking for help from a certain servant with a dissociative identity disorder. _

* * *

**There were a lot of readers who wanted me to write longer chapters for this story, but I have my reasons. One, I find it difficult to write long chapters and I feel like 2-3k words per chapter is sufficient enough. Two, it is difficult for me to find time to write when I have to work long hours to survive. Maybe in future, I will try to write longer chapters if enough people like this story. Maybe… **

**Gray is not telling everything to Weiss (like Salem is immortal), but he is telling her enough so she has a general idea of what she is facing. Gray does have his reasons not telling her everything, but this may bite him in the back later. As for this second arc, it is mostly about training and growing up for Weiss and Gray. **

**A side note: If you were sent into a random Holy Grail War with little knowledge and training as a magus, which Servant (and class) would you choose to summon and why? Also, what is your wish for the Holy Grail if you do win?**

**Thank you for all of your support so far. I am hoping to make this story something that I am proud of.**


	12. Ch 9: Tough Love With Swords

**I do not own the RWBY or Fate universes. This chapter is a little longer, yet sweet.**

* * *

**Chapter Nine: Tough Love With Swords**

* * *

It was surprisingly easy for us to get Klein's support in my plans. It was if you considered the fact that Klein was absolutely loyal to Weiss, who convinced him to help us out. I was not sure where his loyalty to Weiss came from, but I surmise it had to do with Weiss's loneliness during her life, along with the inability to make her own decisions. Klein was probably one of the few people who saw this, and sought to support her in the ways that he can. And Weiss probably recognized his support and saw him as her family. Loyalty does go both ways, you know.

Klein was currently the only other person in the mansion who knew I was here, but Weiss had already convinced him that I was here to help her out. Klein already understood that I wasn't here on Jacques's knowledge and already promised to keep my presence quiet. He didn't ask any questions about how I got here in the first place or about the certain items that I wanted to obtained through his channels. This is why I decided to get his help due to his abilities and loyalty to Weiss, at the cost of revealing my presence at the Schnee mansion to him.

He did, however, pulled me to the side one night and interrogated me. It was a bit scary to be honest, especially when Grumpy Klein is out. I also believe he was no stranger to combat, judging from my instincts warning me that this man is someone more than he looks. I had no doubts about that since the Schnee family is not exactly the most popular people in Remnant, if you get my drift.

But in the end, the entire 'interrogation' wasn't as bad as it sounded. He just wanted to make sure I didn't have any malicious intentions toward Weiss, which I didn't. After asking a few questions (and a few not-so-subtle threats), Klein finally nodded at me and told me that he approved me being with Weiss. But he made me promise to protect her to my best of my abilities, understanding the fact that I was her bodyguard. I was quick to reassure him that I would do so, under the oath as her Servant and possibly friend.

But Klein also murmured something under his breath that I couldn't quite hear clearly, despite of my Servant-level hearing. I only caught a single word from his strangely happy muttering as he left, and what I heard had puzzled me greatly.

_After all, how does 'grandchildren' fit into this conversation?_

* * *

As expected, Klein was very efficient and quick enough to get our stuff in order afterwards. After all, he somehow set everything up for us in a total of three days.

Our private training room was set up in the underground of the mansion, where it had met all of our requirements. It was spacious enough to run around and fight. It had various training weapons and items that we could use. There were even state-of-the-art drones and obstacles for practice, where Weiss later told me that these items were only available at Atlas Academy and their top military facilities. And most importantly, it was covert and sound-proofed to prevent attracting unwanted attention. How Klein managed to do all this without attracting Jacques's attention was baffling, but I didn't ask any questions. Everything was set for my plans to go through.

So on the next day, I woke up Weiss for our first training day. At 3:30 am in the morning.

"Weiss? Weiss!" I spoke out quietly to her.

Weiss stirred from her sleep and opened her bleary eyes. She eventually sat up on her bed and looked towards her window, where the sun hasn't even risen up yet.

"…Gray…is that you?" Weiss said sleepily, turning her head towards me. "Why are you waking me up this early…?"

"We are going to start your training right now, so please get yourself ready," I answered.

"Gray, let me rephrase my question. Why are you making me train _this early_?" Weiss asked again.

"Because early mornings are usually the best time for training, and it helps attain a better state of mind and body later in the day," I gave her my reasoning.

Weiss just stared at me with a look of disbelief at my poor excuses.

"And I don't know how you spent your time during the day as the current SDC heiress," I coughed embarrassingly to myself. As much as I knew about Weiss from the show, there were certain aspects I have yet to learn about her.

"You know, you could have just asked me about my schedule before waking me up like this…" Weiss deadpanned at me.

Oops, I really didn't think about that…

"Also, I actually don't spend a lot of time in SDC matters. I am more like a public figure of the company than an actual heiress with power," Weiss confessed bitterly. "So you won't have much trouble finding adequate time to train with me."

Sensing that I was encroaching on a sensitive topic, I tried to divert her attention elsewhere. "Well, since you are up now, how about doing some training with me?"

"…Alright." Weiss reluctantly agreed with me and proceeded in getting ready. I exited her bedroom in spirit form and sighed to myself. It looks like I have a lot to learn being her Servant.

* * *

We walked through the hidden tunnels that Klein had shown us, with no words spoken between us. I was worried about Weiss, but it seems that she had already moved on from our conversation. I inwardly sighed. I will have worry about this later. Well, let's see if she can survive my first training session?

To be honest, I only had a few ideas on how to train Weiss to become stronger. One of the things I had in mind was to raise Weiss's combat standards. In general, Team RWBY is generally on a higher combat standard than their average peers, but it is apparent that they have trouble fighting alone against their enemies. Of course, they are much stronger fighting together than alone, but there will times they will have stand on their own.

I then was reminded of one of Saber's rather fond memories. It was one of the few training sessions where Saber and Shirou clashed wooden swords together. To be more accurate, it is where Saber beat Shirou down till he had bruises on his bruises. Saber didn't have the aptitude of teaching others, as her true strength lies in her enormous energy reserves than her proficient swordplay. It was surprisingly effective as Shirou learned to use the sword effectively and developed his own combat experience. It wasn't still good enough for Shirou to fight against another Servant, but it was good enough to at least survive an encounter. Saber had justified her rather harsh training methods as the enemy would not be any kinder to Shirou, so she constantly pressures him in order for a better chance to survive the Holy Grail War. It was tough love.

Weiss will be certainly fighting enemies much stronger or skillful than herself. And I certainly care the fact whether she will survive after each battle. So I asked myself, why change something that isn't broken? Weiss noticeably shivered at that moment, even though it wasn't that cold down here. Maybe I should make her wear something warmer while in Atlas? It would be prudent.

We entered the spacious training room soon afterwards. I materialized myself again and looked toward Weiss. "For our training today, we are only going to fight each other with swords to build up your combat experience. I will be holding back and we will be sparring for about two hours."

"…I understand," Weiss drew out her Myrtenaster in response, but I held out my hand.

"Weiss, we would not be using real weapons quite yet. I want to see how well you defend yourself against me. We will be using wooden swords this time," I explained to her confused look.

I grabbed a couple of wooden swords and gave her the one that resembled a rapier. The wooden sword felt nostalgic in my hands, and I felt the sudden urge to swing it at something. But I refrained myself for a moment.

Weiss easily managed to accustom herself with the sword and took up her stance.

"Are you ready?"

"…Yes."

"Then prepare yourself," I said before closing the distance between us in a second.

Then I swung my sword down at her, noting to keep my strength of my blows in check. Weiss, who was surprised at my sudden attack, hastily put up an upper horizontal guard.

Thwack!

Our sword blades were locked together and I looked down at her surprised face.

"Or you will suffer more than necessary…" I said with a not so small grin in my face. "And suffering unnecessary pain is stupid, isn't it?"

Weiss visibly gulped at my statement. I then disengaged and raised my sword to strike again.

_On the other hand, no pain means no gain, right?_

* * *

…Thwack!…Thwack!…Thwack!…

Long story short, I kept on pounding her into submission for two hours straight. But she was persistent enough on getting up every time, which was admirable considering her low endurance. While I had the upper hand in strength and stamina over her, she was obviously skillful enough to hold her own with the sword. But it wasn't enough in the end.

She had lacked enough experience fighting against much stronger opponents like myself.

"Gah!"

I gave a final sword thrust into Weiss and she gasped in response as she soared back in pain. Then I looked at her current state, where she struggled to get right back up again.

Weiss was essentially a wreck. Sweat clung onto her clothing, she kept wincing in pain as she moved around, and she gasped desperately for breath. Her aura cloak was already broken some time ago, but she kept going despite of it. On the other hand, I was basically untouched and felt I could go a few more hours like this comfortably.

I did initially felt bad for Weiss, but I steeled myself afterwards. This was necessary if she is going to survive the following events. Her enemies would not be as kind to her as I was. Besides, looking into her eyes, I only saw sheer determination and defiance to keep going. But it would be counterproductive at this point. I would only hurt her more than necessary and I wasn't that evil to beat her to the point of near death.

"…Let's end this here. You will need to rest to recover," I eventually said to her.

"Ha…Ha…No, let's keep going…" Weiss initially refused.

"It is necessary for you to rest. Any more fighting would be counterproductive at this point," I countered. "We still have time to train in the future, you know."

Weiss's shoulders then slumped at my words and said nothing to me.

"Let's get you back to your room, alright?" I said gently. But it seems that she would have a bit of trouble getting back on her own, so I helped out. So I scooped her up in my arms.

Weiss's reaction was immediate. "W-What?! W-what are you doing, idiot?!"

I raised my brow at her. "I am escorting you to your room, seeing that you can barely move without suffering any pain. And I admit that it is partially my fault that you are in this state. So I am taking responsibility here."

Somehow, my words made Weiss even more flustered. "T-that doesn't mean that you have to carry me like this…!"

Seeing that she will continue to object, I decided to end the conversation with one statement. "But I don't mind carrying a pretty young woman like yourself, if that is what you are asking," I said with a smile.

Her face then turned a glowing red that would have put fire Dust to shame. Then she croaked once and promptly went limp in my arms. Oh, it seems that she had fainted from my teasing. Well, at least this makes things easier for me.

I escorted her back to the bedroom, where I called for Klein to look after her. Then I went back to the training room in my spirit form and rematerialized myself with my invisible sword out this time. Now it is my turn to train since I didn't need any sleep as a Servant. But I couldn't do any ordinary training. The reason that I was able to have the upper hand over my opponents was of my superior physical capabilities and instincts inherited from Saber. What I needed to improve now was my combat skills, rather than my power as a Servant. So I decided to take some help from the legacy of the Heroic Spirit residing inside of me.

I held my own sword up in front of me, and closed my eyes. I focused inwardly, searching for the memories of Saber wielding the sword.

Then I found one and I held it in my mind.

The memories I received was a young Saber training with the sword as a squire, re-living her actual experiences. She was a young tomboy in white tunic grasping onto a wooden practice sword. She aspired not to become a mere knight, but a future king to save her country.

_Then I opened my eyes again as a different person._

* * *

_Keep your guard up always. Clear your mind from outside distractions._

I raised my sword in front of me, with the blade slightly tipped forward towards my imaginary enemy. The only thing on my mind was the enemy in front of me.

_Keep your arms steady and your legs firmly planted on the ground. Breathe with purpose, with the pace of the fight._

I placed my footing a bit wider than shoulder length and had both of my hands gripped firmly on the hilt. I then breathe in and out steadily to pace myself.

_Strike with purpose. Each strike must have intent to bring down the enemy. Square your shoulders when striking. Twist your hips to generate more power. Remember, your enemy is the enemy, not the weapon itself._

I began to swing once, twice, thrice, and so forth. I kept using only my necessary parts of my body to limit wasted energy. I focused initially on making accurate and smooth swings, rather than fast yet erratic ones.

_Use your whole body and control your weight to make your attacks more lethal. But remember to keep your balance secured. Use the ground with a firm stance, and your defense will be impenetrable. _

My foot shifted toward a more proper positioning and my back posture became more straight and firm. I was more aware of my balancing, correcting the little imperfections in my posture as time passed. My strikes became faster with the intent to kill the enemy in front of me. The sword swooshed though the air with every swing made.

_When you stand before the enemy, no mercy should be given. Your path of victory is clear and should be swift in motion. Your sword is the extension of yourself._

My strength felt easier to control. Proper balance became almost second nature. I even thought of seeing an illusion of the future paths of my strikes, which became more accurate as time went by. My strikes became faster and more powerful than the previous.

_Stronger. Harder. Faster. Sharper. Better._

My stance changed as though my body had started to remember movements that I have not done yet before. Uppercut slash. Horizontal cut. Then a downward swing. My repeating sword swings became almost invisible to the human eye at this point.

_When the opportunity reveals itself, close the distance and put an end to the battle itself._

I struck out in a powerful finishing thrust, my breath finally growing a bit heavy from the exertion. Judging from my memories, it looks like it would be some time before I reach Saber's level of combat skills. But it seems that Saber's combat skills and instincts are bleeding over to mine, albeit slowly. Thankfully, it seems that six months is more than an adequate amount of time for training at this pace.

I idly wonder if there are other weapons I could train alongside with the sword. I know Saber is a knight, so she should have received training with other various weapons like the lance, dagger, bow, etc. It seems like a good idea to have different weapon training if I somehow cannot use the sword for some reason. Maybe I could even try using a gun? That is an intriguing thought.

* * *

"Gray?" A voice echoed out in the training room, interrupting my musing.

I blinked and turned around toward the voice. I saw Weiss standing by the entrance.

"Weiss," I greeted back as I dismissed my blade. "Have you rested well?"

"I'm fine, just feeling a little sore everywhere." Weiss said sarcastically, though her eyes avoided mine. She must have still feel embarrassed from my teasing before. "But I guess that you are still aren't tired if you are still here."

I blinked at her statement. "What? I was only started to train here at around 6 o'clock."

Weiss then stare at me, and did something I did not expect from her. She giggled. "It is nearly noon right now. I guess that you trained so hard that you lost track of time. It was no wonder I cannot keep track of your swings."

I stare back at her in disbelief. I trained for nearly six hours?! But I feel like I am barely winded now! Was I really that focused in my training?

Weiss eventually stopped her laughter, but still smiled at me, "Well, since it is nearly noon… would you like to accompany me for lunch today? My father isn't here right now and I am sure that Klein would be happy to cook for you."

"Weiss, this isn't really that necessary…" I started to protest. "I am a Servant; I really do not need to eat…"

_Gggrrrrrrrrrrr….._

Just then, a loud rumble roared throughout the room. I looked away from Weiss in embarrassment. Seriously, how did I forget about Saber and food? Not to mention that I also love to eat…

Weiss could only give me a smirk at my dilemma, after being a little surprised at the noise. She strutted towards me with a sly smile. "Oh? I didn't know that Servants didn't need to eat. But I don't think that means that you can't eat."

Then she looked at my torso and bent down. She gave it a gentle poke. My traitorous stomach growled again in response. Damn it.

"And it seems that your stomach is much more honest with me than you are," Weiss said in amusement as she straighten up.

I simply stared at Weiss in bewilderment. What happened to my Weiss? What have you done to her? The Weiss I knew wasn't this playful or mischievous! Was this revenge for the teasing I have done to her before?!

But...she seems much happier than before. And I certainly don't dislike it…

She then mysteriously smiled at me and turned around, beckoning me to follow her. For a moment there, I thought I saw someone else in her place. Someone who was a bit matured yet ethereal. I blinked my eyes again, and Weiss was still there. Huh, that was a bit strange…

"Fine… But I seriously think you would regret trying to feed me," I could only sighed in a defeated tone as I followed her afterwards. But I guess having a little snack break wouldn't hurt. Hunger is the enemy, so I should strive to strike it down when I have the chance to do so.

_However, my suspicions were correct. Saber's gluttonous appetite was as real as the legends foretold._

* * *

**I am going to answer a few questions that I had neglected to answer because I thought it would be pretty obvious by now. Gray has Excalibur, not Excalibur Proto, due to fusing with Saber from Fate/Stay Night. He is not Proto Saber, but a self insert that looks like Proto Saber with Fate Saber's powers. Gray knows about RWBY Volume 6 already as it was mentioned in the previous chapter that he knows Salem is immortal.**

**Back to the story, Gray is going to experiment with a lot of things that he could learn and train during this arc, especially things that Saber herself would not have ever considered. Weiss will get much stronger in the future. And I plan to make this arc a bit more interesting and longer than what I had originally planned for. **

**A side note: If you were sent to Remnant and had a choice in your place of residence, where would you live and why? (For example: I would like to live on the island of Patch (Vale) because it is a good place to raise a family there.)**

**Thank you for your reviews so far, and I hope for this story gets even more popular in the future.**


	13. Ch 10: A Talk Over Lunch

**I do not own the RWBY or Fate universes. But I'm hungry…and I apologize for the late update on this chapter. I didn't have a lot of time to write this week and this chapter took more time than expected to write.**

* * *

**Chapter 10: A Talk Over Lunch**

* * *

I was fighting an intense battle with numerous enemies surrounding me. I thrust out with my chosen weapon and sounds of metal against metal rang out.

Bones were shattered to pieces. Blades tore into flesh. Blood has been spilt.

There were piles of causalities in the battlefield, all which were defeated by me. Then I swallowed in utter bliss and proceeded with the next incoming enemy wave.

_And what a delicious battle it was indeed._

* * *

"Klein, your cooking is commendable." I moaned in response as I inhaled a medium-done steak. Weiss and I were currently at the servant dining section for privacy where we were eating our meal with enthusiasm. Well, I admit most of that enthusiasm was from me. But I can't help it! I was not kidding when I said Klein is a great cook.

For instance, I was currently wrangling with a perfect oven roasted chicken served with sweet vegetable sauté and garnished with fresh herbs. It was glistening from the sheen of the oil covering it. When I first pierced it with my fork, a puff of steam escaped, releasing a tantalizing fragrance into the air. I pulled a piece of chicken to my mouth and engulfed it.

_It was a second Avalon._

There was that perfect crunch of the skin, where it popped with every chew. The breast meat was just right, not dry at all, like the chicken that I was used to eating for my entire life. It had a very succulent and tender flavor. You can only get this flavor from top ingredients, and the Schnee family is certainly wealthy enough to get them. The right level of sweetness from the cooked onions and carrots, and the delicate texture of the potatoes and beans only serve to further prove that fact.

But that does not detract from the obvious skill and effort put into cooking this chicken. The meat was cooked perfectly all the way, with a golden color skin. The added amount of herbs and spices were just the right proportions, not overpowering natural flavors of the chicken or causing dryness in my mouth. I contently swallowed my bite and proceeded in finishing the rest of the chicken off with utter glee.

Well, I can safely conclude that Klein's cooking is nothing to dismiss so easily. But I do wonder just how many talents does Klein have? I will not be surprised if he knows how to pilot a military-grade airship at this point.

* * *

"I appreciate your high praise, Mister Saber," Klein replied nonchalantly as he carried away the next set of empty plates and bowls from the table. But it was apparent he was preening from my praise, judging from his eyes briefly changing color to yellow from light brown.

On the other hand, Weiss could only gaped at me from across the table as I kept eating at a steady pace with table manners fitting for a noble. Of course, she wasn't gaping at me because I actually had proper table manners. She was probably looking at the tall stacks of emptied plates and bowls around me in an amount others could have probably called a banquet. I had no shame in my huge appetite because Klein's cooking was really good, _almost as good_ as Shirou's cooking from Saber's memories. Saber's bias may have subtly influenced my judgment there.

I finally swallowed my last bite and wiped my mouth neatly with a cloth napkin. As much as I was glutton, I was certainly no slob. Weiss still didn't speak as she kept on staring at me in a daze. It was getting a little awkward, so I decided to break the silence between us.

"Is there something wrong, Weiss?" I asked her politely, where Weiss finally snapped out of her stupor.

"Ah? N-no, I was just a bit surprised by your appetite." Weiss replied to me hastily. "Do all Servants…eat as much as you?"

"Hmmm…I don't think so. It is more like a quirk of mine," I answered her with some thought. "All Servants don't have a need to eat as they are spirits, so I cannot really give you a definite answer. But they still can if they want to, as the act of eating is more than just a way to sustain oneself. And there's nothing like a good delicious meal to help establish a positive relationship with someone, be it a Heroic Spirit or any other ally."

"Of course, I won't try to bankrupt the Schnee family in trying to feed myself. I am quite conscious of my appetite," I added afterwards. At least, I can say with confidence that I don't eat as much as a Saiyan would. Weiss would probably be horrified to see someone like Goku devour about ten times as much food as what I just ate.

And without any proper table manners.

"Actually, I wouldn't mind if you did that. I am sure that Father could handle the expenses of feeding you, even if he gets suspicious of why we are spending a lot more on food expenses," Weiss chuckles darkly at my statement.

Oh. Then again, I did say someone will regret feeding me. And if it is her wealthy, poor excuse of a father paying the bill, then I won't have any qualms about it. He is not a character that I like anyways. And I get enjoy eating as much as I like for the duration of my stay here. Heh.

* * *

I then decided to change the topic. "Putting aside my unusual appetite, I am sure that you have something else in mind when you invited me to lunch?"

As much as I enjoyed eating with Weiss, I am sure she invited me for a discussion rather than just a simple meal.

"Frankly… I do," Weiss admitted as she looked down at her lap. "While I do know more about our Master-Servant relationship, I don't know much about you as a person. O-of course, you also don't know much about me, either."

"That is an understandable concern…" I said while thinking to myself. It was a discussion that I wanted to avoid till later, but she probably needs to know a few things about myself as a person. But there are some things I would rather not share…

"Very well, I will say few things about myself. And you are also free to ask me _one_ question afterwards. But I must warn you that there are some things I do not wish to talk about in detail. Is that acceptable, Weiss?" I finally replied to her.

"…Yes, I can live with that."

"Alright then, so here are a few things about myself. My favorite color is blue, it doesn't matter what shade or tint it comes in. My weapon of choice is my sword as it stands for the ideals of someone I admired and strive to be. What I prefer to do in my free time is to read stories and I know quite a few stories myself. My pet peeve would be getting a paper cut while turning a page in my book. I love to drink hot chocolate and my favorite season is summer. My current dream is to see the world out there, and what it has to offer for me. And maybe write a book or two," I said in thought. It wasn't too personal, but at least I shared a few things about myself.

"So what about you?" I then asked Weiss.

"Me? Well… my favorite color would be baby blue as it is my eye color. My preferred weapon is my Myrtenaster, as I built it myself to become a Huntress. What I prefer to do in my free time would be to write songs. My pet peeve would be all of the horrific nicknames that everyone seems to address me as…" Weiss paused for a moment before continuing. "I prefer to drink coffee and my favorite season would be winter. My current dream is become a Huntress and leave my family legacy as something that I am proud of."

"Well, now we know a few things about each other, do you have a question for me?" I said. I was prepared for a lot of different questions, but the one she asked me caught me off-guard. But I should have expected this kind of question with her background.

"Do you have any family or friends?" Weiss asked me.

"Family? Friends?" I mused. My personal life is not something I wanted to share to just anyone. But maybe she would understand my situation better than most people.

* * *

Saber's blood family, Weiss's family and my family all had problems. They were…dysfunctional families. In some way, our parents didn't love one or each other at all. And if I had to say why dysfunctional families existed, I would suggest looking at the parents' relationship first.

Siblings were not much better in our cases. Saber's half-sister Morgan, was always scheming against her because Saber became the rightful ruler of Camelot instead of her. Whitney, Weiss's younger brother, did not like her for certain reasons I suspect. Winter, Weiss's older sister, did care for her. But in my opinion, she acted more like a strict mother and wasn't around a lot as she abandoned the SDC heiress position to Weiss for an Atlas military position. I don't blame Winter for this considering the circumstances of the Schnee family, but Weiss was left with such a burden. Likewise, my younger sibling wasn't at bad terms with me, but we didn't really interact a lot if we had a choice. I always look back at my past and wondered if I could have done better as an older sibling. But I guess it is a bit too late for that now.

Saber was the probably the luckiest in terms of family as she did have Sir Kay and Ector as her adoptive family, and they certainly cared for her. On the other hand, Mordred killed Saber in retaliation for the rejection of being her 'son'. So it kinda evens out in the end. Weiss had Klein, who supported her when Winter wasn't around. And I thought I had an okay family _till that day_ when everything just crumbled into pieces. In the end, a loving and whole family was something very elusive to all of us. It was something that I sympathized with Weiss, even when our family situations were different in context.

As for friends, Saber didn't really have friends. Her knights were her close comrades certainly, but they saw her as the perfect king rather than a fellow human being. That distance only grew between them during the waning years of Camelot. It didn't help that Saber had kept her gender secret from them. It was only during the Fifth Holy Grail War that Saber was able to open up more to others, especially with her Master, Shirou.

On the other hand, Weiss had Team RWBY as her friends. There were obviously a few rough starts in their relationships (such as with Ruby and Blake) due to her initial cold and irritating nature, but she does place a lot of trust in them afterwards. It helps that they went through a lot of ordeals and joys together, and all of them had genuinely good characters. They all obviously had their flaws, but they saw each other more for their good sides rather than for their character weaknesses.

As for me, I was pretty much a loner in life. It wasn't easy for me to make friends, and I found it even more difficult to keep them. It only became harder as I grew up and found myself alone in the end. That is probably why I kept myself in company by reading stories and watching RWBY and other anime in my spare time. I always wondered if I can make friends with those fictional characters, given the chance to do so. I always had been criticized for not paying attention to reality around me in preference for trapping myself in my reading. But for me, reality sucked. I wanted to change it. But maybe I was the one avoiding changing myself. I really don't know.

Perhaps that is why I accepted going to this world. So I didn't have to feel lonely. Or feel so empty inside. Maybe I just wanted to escape my pitiful reality. Maybe that is why I secretly admired Weiss for her pride and defiance, something that I didn't have before I gained Saber's powers. At least, she had the drive to change things around her unlike me. Could I do something like that as well?

_In a way, I guess there are some things I could learn from Weiss._

* * *

"…I prefer not to talk about my family. You could say that my family had…problems in a different context like yours," I eventually said after a long period of thought. "And as for friends, I have none. In fact, I quite envy your own friendships."

"What? You envy me for that?" Weiss asked me incredulously. "What is so special about my own friendships that you would envy?"

"Because even if I did try to make friends where I came from, I know for a fact that none of those people will have my back if I was in serious trouble. They have their own interests in mind, and will probably abandon me at the first sign of trouble. It is understandable as my troubles are usually not worth the effort to suffer through. The human heart is quite selfish in that way," I chuckled to myself in a depreciating manner.

"On the other hand, your friends did stay and fight with you, and I am confident that they will choose to protect you whenever you are in trouble. They are your family. You don't get to choose who or when you meet. However, you do get to choose who you hold onto. And I advise you hold onto your friends for the rest of your life, no matter what," I said to Weiss.

"But… having Team RWBY as my family?" Weiss questioned me in a small voice.

"Family is just a six letter word. It means whatever you want it to mean. And if it means that you like having Team RWBY as your family, then they are your family. It is just simple as that," I casually answered her. "I believe bonds are more important in a family than mere blood ties. Don't you agree?"

"…Yes, I can see that," Weiss replied eventually.

A period of comfortable silence occurred between us as we had thoughts to think about. Then I spoke out to her first.

"And… I would like to thank you."

"Thank me for what?" Weiss asked me bewilderingly.

"I would like to thank you for having this conversation with me. Speaking with you made me realize a few things about myself that I haven't thought about before," I confessed. "I am aware that I am still someone with flaws. As your Servant, I confess that I can learn a few things from you as my Master. And I will support you, even without my obligations as a Servant."

"W-well, then I will expect no less from you," Weiss replied in a seemingly haughty manner.

But she couldn't hide the dazzling yet rare smile on her face from me. I liked it. She should smile more like this. It only made her look more beautiful than she already was.

"W-what are you saying all of a sudden?"

I blinked to myself.

Had I said that last part aloud?

The slight reddening of her face only seemed to further prove that fact. I blame my absent mindfulness for this. I truly do.

I cough to myself in embarrassment in order to change the subject. "But enough of that, our first training session was adequate in both helping raise your combat instincts and endurance during battle. But there is something else that we still need to work on. Your summoning technique," I said seriously.

"Ah, yes. I still haven't managed to get a proper summoning," Weiss noted after calming herself down. "I still don't know why it doesn't come to me easily like my older sister."

"Stop it right there," I commended her. "You are not your older sister, and you should not expect that you will be able to do the exact same things as her."

"But…" Weiss started to object.

"No buts. You need to find your own path. That is the only way you can break the wall in front of you. You are Weiss Schnee, after all," I said sternly. There are exceptions like Shirou, but Archer was technically Shirou himself from the future. Unless this world had another Weiss coming from the future, Weiss will have to pave her own path forward.

_With that thought, I hope I do not meet a Counter Guardian SCHNEE any time soon…_

Weiss slumped and said nothing to that.

"Fortunately for you, I have a few ideas to help with your summoning," I added with a small smile. Weiss was certainly not the only person who had trouble breaking through their bottlenecks. She just needs a little direction here. And I am willing to help her out in that aspect.

"Is that true…?" Weiss asked with some hope in her eyes.

"Yes, I do. I wouldn't lie to you about that. Now let's get started, shall we?" I confirmed as I got up from dining table.

It would take some time, but she will get it if I had anything to say about it. I may not be able to grant her magic, but I can help her create miracles.

_For miracles are magic in a way._

* * *

**Nothing much has happened in the story so far, except for a quick lunch break and an interpersonal talk between Weiss and Gray. The story may seem a bit slow in plot progression, but I write each chapter with an intended purpose behind them. Hopefully, I can complete this story in a satisfactory manner. And story updates will still be once a week, unless I am really busy or some exenterating circumstances come up.**

**We will be focusing on Gray's training on Weiss's semblance on the next chapter, plus a hint of something radically different in his training plans.**

**A side note: You have the privilege to eat any single food entree from the fictional anime universe. What will that be? (Ex: I would like to try the Katsudon (a fried pork cutlet over a bowl of rice) from Shokugeki no Souma.)**

**Thank you for reading Gray's adventures so far and I would like this story to earn its legend in the Throne of Fanfiction someday.**


	14. Ch 11: Semblance of Magic

**I do not own the RWBY or Fate universes. Another (late) chapter for you guys.**

* * *

**Chapter Eleven: Semblance of Magic**

* * *

I quietly observed in the sidelines as Weiss held up her sword in front of her. Then she pointed the blade downwards and firmly thrust it into the floor. Her eyes were currently closed in concentration. The floor then lit up with the appearance of a large white glyph, bearing imageries of four large swords slowly rotating around a snowflake.

The illumination of the glyph slowly increased in magnitude as time passed by. The glyph's rotations kept accelerating up to a certain point. And the energy emitted from the glyph seemed pretty stable and strong judging from my magic senses. It was slow yet steady progress so far, given what I have seen so far from her past attempts.

I personally found the Schnee glyphs to be relatively interesting semblance among many others for a couple of reasons. One, unlike other semblances, the Schnee semblance is hereditary, meaning that it is passed down by bloodline. Two, the glyphs have rather multi-dimensional abilities, where most semblances are usually tied to only one specific ability. So I wonder if there was anything special about the Schnee family background that would explain these reasons. Maybe reading some of the books in their private library could reveal something? I doubt it, or else Weiss would not have so much trouble with her summoning in the first place.

Speaking of which, the summoning glyph started to pulse unexpectedly when Weiss's breath hitched and the initially smooth flow of aura was interrupted. The glyph then became quite unstable, as its size grew and shrank at an erratic rate and its rotations became randomly varied in speed. Finally, the summoning glyph died out completely as Weiss slumped on the ground with her arms slack at her sides, apparently exhausted from the ordeal.

It was a failure.

I quietly sighed as I strolled over to where Weiss stood, her snow-white bangs hiding her eyes as her head remained bowed down. She slowly straightened up at my approach yet did not look at me in the eyes.

"I suppose this is where you tell me that I need to try again," Weiss said rather bitterly to me. Even if I wasn't a Grimm, the sheer emotions of frustration and depression from her were quite apparent. I guess it was not easy to fail numerous times without any inkling of success in them.

But if there was one thing about Weiss I admired most, it was her tendency to push through who she was before to become a better person. She can be irritating and arrogant to some degree, but I can see she is more of a stubborn and prideful woman inside. Most people would get discouraged in her situation and would have given up sooner. And seeing her like this felt…wrong to me for some reason. I suddenly felt my wise side itching to speak out.

And so I let it speak out.

"Nope. However, I am interested to know what you were thinking when you were summoning," I spoke out, causing her to look at me finally.

"I was thinking of trying to summon the foe that I once defeated, but I just lose control and…" Weiss started to say.

"Pause it right there for a moment. Weiss, are you interesting in hearing a story from me?" I interrupted her. This would be an interesting lesson.

"A story?" Weiss scoffed at me. "How would a story help me out with my summoning?"

"Trust me on this one. There is always something you can learn from stories. But are you willing to hear me out?" I asked her again.

"…Alright. I might as well, seeing that I have made no progress so far," Weiss said with a heavy sigh as she smoothed out the wrinkles on her skirt.

"Good. Now where should I start?" I said as Weiss took a seat across from me. "Well, long ago in a galaxy far, far away…There was once a young warrior who sought out magic training from a very old yet wise master in order to save the galaxy. The master was initially reluctant to teach the young warrior due to his various faults like his recklessness, anger, and lack of patience. But he did eventually train him with various exercises, where the young warrior completed them all. Then the master gave him one final test, which was to lift a trapped aircraft in a bog. The young warrior was convinced that he could not do it. He tried anyways and failed to do so. He then protested to the master it was impossible as the aircraft was too heavy and big for him to carry and that he tried," I narrated to Weiss.

"Of course, I would imagine that would be an impossible feat for many people. But I assume that was not the case here," Weiss interjected thoughtfully.

"Yes. So the old, yet wise master then said, 'Try not- Do or do not. There is no try.' Despite being smaller and physically weaker than the young warrior, the master lifted the aircraft from the bog with ease. The young warrior could not believe his eyes and said so to the master. The master simply replied that was the very reason why the young warrior failed," I said, finishing the story there. Yes, this was a very simplified story of Luke Skywalker's training with Yoda.

"I don't understand. How does this story have to do with my situation then? That I shouldn't try? Or that I should just give up? And what is up with that master's horrible grammar?" Weiss questioned me.

I simply shook my head at her.

"Do or do not refer not to simple success or failure, but rather your own commitment to the action itself. You can either choose to act or not. There is no in-between, and there should not be any doubts in your mind from your previous failures. In your case, you were already discouraged by your previous failings and thus you weren't fully committed to the action," I said. "Am I right?"

"…Yes." Weiss admitted in a small voice. I simply nod at her reply and then continued with my explanation.

"Do not try means that you are taking conscious thought out of what should be unconscious action. Trying to think about an action can distract you from what you need to do when acting on instinct will serve you better. For example, do you think to breathe or do you breathe without thinking?" I asked Weiss.

"…You breathe without thinking." Weiss answered in realization.

"Exactly. In the end, it relies on your gut feeling. Trust in yourself and let your instincts guide you," I explained. "Do not try to think too hard on your semblance itself. It is a part of you and it should come naturally to you at some point," I concluded my lesson.

"And as for the grammar, it is just his strange way of speaking. I honestly believe that it makes you think more about what he has to say if you are so intrigued by such dialogue. I find it to be a wise quote that would serve you well anytime."

Weiss nodded at me. "He does sounds like a very wise, old master."

"Well, he had to be wise and old if he was over nine hundred years old and a leader of thousands of space wizards," I said humorously. "He was also an alien from another world."

Weiss gaped at me before sighing to herself. "I don't know why I even bother to ask…"

I chuckled at her response. "Oh, I will be giving you more words of wisdom from many others than you can ever fully comprehend. And stories. I can't forget about stories."

"But as much of an interesting story it was, I don't know if I could do the same thing…" Weiss said doubtfully as she looked downwards at her skirt.

"Well, I told you this story mainly to remove the negative thoughts in your mind rather than to take it literally into your semblance training. I believe it does take some time and direction to make a specific action into instinct. It would possible for you to do same with your semblance, but I can see that you are rather methodical in your actions. Maybe another approach would suit you better in the meanwhile. Perhaps you could create a mental trigger."

"A mental trigger?" Weiss asked me in keen interest. "Like a mnemonic device?"

"Yes, to a certain extent. If I remember correctly, you did say that summoning allows a Schnee to summon a foe that had caused them to push past of who they were and become who they are now. Is that correct?"

A nod from Weiss confirmed my statement.

"A mental trigger is the forming of a unique image in your mind that you can associate with the activation of something inside you, such as your summoning. With enough practice, you can activate your summoning just by thinking of that specific image. It could also help with your problem with control," I explained to her. "A mental trigger has to be a memorable and unique image to you that can be tied into your summoning. Preferably, it has to be something emotional like something traumatic or very close to your heart. I am guessing that your summoning should involve something that caused a great change in your life, but the specific image is really up to you."

"Would…this really work for me?" Weiss asked me doubtfully.

"I don't know. Only you can know for yourself." I paused before smirking at her. "You can either choose to do it or do not. Th…"

"… there is no try." Weiss finished my statement.

"There we go! Now _let's do it_, shall we?" I said cheerfully, slapping my palms together.

* * *

Weiss kept her breathing steady as she prepared trying, no, _doing _her summoning again.

She cannot afford to fail now. Not when she has his trust in her. Not when there is a bigger test down the line. Not when she has everything to lose.

Weiss then felt a hand on her shoulder.

"Calm yourself," Weiss heard Gray say. "You are a little too tense right now. Do not worry too much about failure. I believe in you."

Weiss relaxed herself, loosened up the tenseness in her shoulders. "Thank you, Gray. I think I am ready now."

She then felt his hand removed from her shoulder in response. She almost regretted the sudden lack of his comforting hand, but willed herself to move on and concentrate. She focused on finding her mental image as instructed by Gray. But what unique mental image would trigger her summoning?

Gray did say that it could be something that changed her very life forever, but what could that be for her? Then Gray's own words echoed through her mind.

_'…It has to be emotional like something traumatic or very close to your heart…'_

* * *

_A forgotten yet vivid memory then rose in her mind. _

_Shouts of anger and crying echoed in the background. It was blurry, but Weiss could see two distinct white figures facing each other in the distance. It seemed they were arguing._

_'How could you miss your daughter's birthday party?!' One white figure shouted in a female voice. 'Just because you held a company meeting today?'_

_'I don't have time for mere birthday parties. You couldn't possibly understand the lengths I've gone to in order to keep the Schnee Dust Company at where it is now.' The other white figure answered coldly in a male voice._

_'But she is your daughter! Your family! Why would you simply disregard her for the company!?' The female figure questioned the second figure in disbelief. '_

_'It is none of your concern. Now, if you would excuse me, I have some important business to attend to.' The male figure said dismissively._

_The male figure tried to exit through a door, but the female figure moved to block his path._

_'No, you answer me. I demand to know why.' The female figure said in a quiet yet firm voice._

_'Is this really that important to you?' The male figure said exasperatedly as though this conversation wasn't worth his time._

_'It should be to you! You are a father, you should care for your family more than this.' The female figure said._

_'Don't you dare lecture me….' The male figure said in a warning tone. _

_'Then tell me why. Why would you not care about your daughter's birthday? Why do care for the company more than your family?' The female figure kept questioning insistently._

_'Because I only married you for the Schnee family name!' The male figure finally snapped at the female figure._

_'…What?'_

_'You heard me right…I only married you because I needed the family name, to take the SDC company to new heights. The only reason that I had children with you is to create heirs for the company and for my company reputation purposes.' The male figure confessed in a cold and rational manner._

_'…So you only married me because of business, not love.' The female figure said with a weakened tone._

_'Of course, our marriage was just a business transaction between your father and I. Oh I'm sorry, did you really think that there was any love lost between us? Then I will gladly correct you on that.' The male figure coldly finished the conversation._

_The male figure then bypassed the female figure and exited the room. Then the scene changed._

_The female white figure was currently sitting alone in a chair beside a small table. Besides her was a trolley filled with various bottles._

_'…Ha…Is this really what we are worth to him? Just a family name.' The female figure said in a dejected tone. She was holding a wine bottle in her hands. _

_The female figure then popped the bottle open, and poured into a glass on the table._

_'Then here is to our family, nothing more than a mere name...' the first voice said dejectedly as she then swiftly downed the glass of wine._

_A gray fog suddenly rolled in, covering the scene of the forgotten memory once more._

_Weiss looked around. She then found herself starring at a scared, young girl. The said girl was starring right back at her._

_No, she was just a reflection on a silver mirror. The scared, young girl was in fact her…_

_Then something crashed into the said mirror. _

_She shattered into thousands of shards. _

_Not shards of glass. _

_But shards of ice._

_And something cold flared within her._

* * *

"…eiss?…Weiss!" A panicked voice cried out to her, waking her up from her conversation.

Weiss gasped for air as a huge surge of power burst from the glyph. She felt Gray caught her as she was forced back from the immense wind pressure. But the glyph still remained as it subsequently lifted itself off the ground and turned vertically in the air.

A singular arm materialized out of the summoning glyph where it held a single heavy broadsword. It stopped at the shoulder, where it floated in the air, as if it was awaiting her command.

"It… worked?" Weiss murmured as she stared at the summoned. It was still incomplete, but it was much more than what she had accomplished in years.

"Apparently, albeit a little incomplete. But it seems like you have little problem completing it if you keep at this rate. Good job," Gray commented, as he closely examined the summon with interest.

"T-thank you…" Weiss could only answer shyly. She couldn't really say anything else.

"Just remember not to push yourself too hard on this. I am sure that you have at least heard the phrase, 'patience is a virtue'. It is a trait that I would think would help you a lot in particular." Gray cautioned her.

"I will…" Weiss promised. It felt…wonderful that she was able to accomplish this much with his advice. But she wasn't prepared for Gray's next statement.

* * *

"By the way, what was your chosen mental image?" I curiously asked Weiss.

"It…it was a reflection of me shattering into pieces," Weiss managed to answer.

"Huh…I guess that would do the trick. I would suggest practicing creating that image till it becomes second nature for your summoning. But other than that, I think you can do just fine." I said in deep thought.

But something bothered me. On the outside, Weiss seemed fine but her eyes tell me a different story. Did she find her mental image to be that traumatizing? Or was she badly shaken from something else, like her past? In the end, I decided not to push her on the topic, not wanting to spoil her success. But I would have to talk to her later.

So I believe it wouldn't be too long till Weiss is able to summon normally now. But I still think there is still room for improvement even after the fact. I do have grand plans for her summoning abilities. It is too bad I already destroyed the Grimm Wyvern at Beacon Academy…I would just have to find another _Kevin_ for her.

But I have my own special training to attend to.

* * *

I had been thinking about this for some time now, and I decided it would best if I learned how to use some magecraft after weighting my training options here. I had a few reasons why I decided to do so.

In my opinion, Saber's skillset is a bit inadequate for me.

Don't get me wrong, Saber is an excellent and well-balanced servant in terms of physical capabilities, combat power, and magic reserves. Her physical capabilities and magic reserves are what make her one of the top Servants choices. Her skills and combat experience certainly are useful in many situations that I found myself in. There is no doubt why she is one of the best Saber-Class Servants. But I wasn't quite satisfied with how I am quite limited in the options I have in terms of different situations I could find myself in.

Grimm were probably the main enemies that I would be dealing with here and their strengths come from their overwhelming numbers rather than their individual strengths. I would find myself hard press to deal with numerous enemies at once or those who fly can out of my attack range without resorting to overkill methods like Excalibur. I prefer more surgical methods in taking down my enemies quickly than brute force things if possible. Magecraft can be one of the ways that I can discover how to take down multiple enemies easily (and avoid causing collateral damage).

Saber is obviously more geared toward direct combat judging from her skills and abilities, but I know that not all battles have to be fought and there are some situations that require… a more delicate touch. Fortunately, I could probably modify a few of Saber's skills or abilities for non-combat purposes, but magecraft could probably further my options in that area as well.

And magecraft is something that I wanted to do for a long time and I actually have the chance to do it now. I had some knowledge of what magecraft can do and Saber has some teachings from Merlin as well. Saber had potential as a magus with her immense magic power, but she didn't bother to learn magecraft in the first place. The reason she gave was that magecraft was not the way of the king, but she probably didn't have much patience to learn it in the first place. Not really surprising, since magecraft takes a considerable amount time to learn and use. But unlike Saber, I had some time to get a few spells down and I was patient enough to do so.

* * *

So I find myself sitting alone in the underground training room in a meditating position. I had gathered a few random objects scattered around me for training purposes. I start to calm myself down by breathing in and out slowly with my eyes closed.

So let's review my current knowledge.

Well, I already have my dragon core activated, which is a package of numerous magic circuits. It gives me an advantage over any average magus in terms of capacity and as I suspect, quality because of my inherited dragon blood. Dragons are essentially magic power given form. At the very least, I was better off than Shirou. He had initially created his own magic circuits out his nerves, which were temporary and weak in capacity. In other words, nerve circuits are very risky and painful to create; thus the wrong way to become a magus. I involuntarily shudder at the thought of using my nerves as pseudo magic circuits.

Now, I got the problem of magic power out of the way, let's review my knowledge. Magecraft, or Thaumaturgy, is essentially to convert the Magical Energy inside one's body to transform the external world. The power source is my magic power and the command do so is controlled by my magic circuits (or in this case, my dragon core). Equivalent exchange is one of the primary rules of magecraft. Basically, in order to create something, you must give up something in return. It makes sense so far. Magecraft is doing something possible by modern means (science) with a magical process.

Magic energy comes in two forms called mana (magical energy in the outside environment) and od (magical energy inside a living being). These are converted into a useable form called prana with magic circuits, which can be used to conduct magecraft. I obviously had a lot of od inside of me, but the mana concentration in the air is rather… thin. It is still quite a bit more than what you might find in present-day Fuyuki, but much less that what Saber would have felt during her days in Camelot. It probably has to do with the fact that the Brother Gods were gone and very few individuals had magic anymore. I took note of that, as external mana sources would be rare for me to tap in if I find a way to do so.

I don't know anything about my element or origin, or the method I can use to find out. This would be helpful in deciding how I can proceed in magecraft, but it is not completely necessary to perform magecraft itself. I just have to be careful as magecraft can be dangerous if done improperly.

Spellcasting is the way of speaking to oneself, instead of the world. It is using incantations or arias to activate the magical energy to create magecraft. I think it is a bit much to talk to activate magecraft, then again activating Noble Phantasms' True Names are kind of the same thing. So spellcasting is like self-hypnosis; placing oneself in a state to control one's Magic Circuits. So it requires a deeper state of mind to create magecraft.

So normally a magus would activate their magic circuits with a mental trigger, but my magic core is always generating magical energy independently like it is breathing. So I don't necessarily need a mental trigger to use my magic power (though I may create one later just in case).

* * *

So it looks like I have pretty much met the requirements for starting out as a novice magus.

My next step is to experiment with a few spells. Being cautious here, I decided to go with Material Transmutation as my first magecraft field of choice, due to my apparent inexperience about magecraft and my familiarity of what it can do from the show. Material Transmutation is the manipulation of material matter with magic power. The skillset includes structural grasping or analysis, reinforcement, alteration, and projection.

So for today, I am starting out with the basics. Structural Analysis. It is basically a glorified magic scanner that allows one to get information about the components of an object. It is a pretty useful and easy-to-learn skill for any amateur magus, and that is why I am learning this first. So I picked up an iron rod for practice.

I first created a mental image of scanning it and I started to divert a very small amount of prana to scan it. My trickle of magic power enveloped the object and the object itself started to weakly resist the prana flow. This phenomenon is not surprising that it follows the law of resistance. Resistance is the measure of how resistant the object in mind is to magical energy, and living beings are the most resistant of all. This resistance is what allows structural analysis to work as magical energy is bounced back by the object in question. So theoretically, the deflected magic gathers information about the object in question and returns back to me as a 'scanned blueprint'. It took me quite a few times to do this right properly.

Speaking of which, a complete mental blueprint finally popped into my mind. The iron rod was unsurprisingly was mostly made of iron with a few elemental impurities, likely from the air and the process of making it. I had a general idea of its shape and size, as well roughly the length of time that it was an iron rod. That is all I got really. I couldn't get much more information than that. But then again, I haven't gotten enough practice yet and I was not Shirou.

Then I decided on impulse to add a little energy to reinforce the iron rod. Just out of curiosity. I tentatively tried to fill in one of the metaphysical 'cracks' that I found in the iron rod. Reinforcement was the next step of material transmutation, where you would fill in 'cracks' of the object itself with magic energy and 'reinforce' its attributes and existence. But this added magical energy can be considered to be poison if added incorrectly, as the object in question is deemed already 'complete' by the world. And I just found out what happens firsthand.

_Crack!_

The iron rod unceremoniously split itself into two pieces almost immediately. I sighed as I shook my hand from the tingling feeling from the shock. It seems that I either put too much energy into it or I did incorrectly somehow. It would require a bit more practice and experimenting as I go. I just hope it doesn't take too long though. I only had less than ten months, not ten years for practice.

But this failure is kind of interesting in its own way. Could I use this to break certain stuff intentionally? It would probably be a little dangerous as I would have to touch the object in question, but I don't see why not. I am not quite sure if it would be practical in combat situations though.

But I probably won't be a Caster anytime soon from my progress. But that is fine. I generally view magecraft as more to supplement my combat capabilities rather than as a substitute. There are other things that I could learn to help Weiss and myself in the long run with magecraft. And a sword is still more familiar to me than magic powers any day.

I sighed to myself as I grabbed another nearby object and started the process again. Well, practice makes perfect, right? And I am certainly not going to improve myself if I sit around doing nothing.

_ But I do wonder how the rest of world is doing so far in my absence…_

* * *

**Gray and Weiss have finally made some progress in their training so far. There will a mini timeskip and a change of gears for the next few chapters, but we will primarily stay in the SDC mansion till the end of Volume 4. I know that this chapter is late for various, unsaid reasons and I apologize to those readers who have looking forward for this update. But as a side effect, this chapter is much longer than the previous ones. And I will do my best to keep this story going as long as possible.**

**On Gray's use of magecraft, I would say that he would be able to use it due to his knowledge of what it can do and Merlin must have at least taught some basics about magecraft knowledge to Artoria. It would be obvious that he would never be a good magus without a formal teacher, but it would play a small role in Gray's abilities. I was thinking of releasing another interlude soon, so look forward for a change of pace.**

**A side note: If you could have any heroic spirit as your teacher/mentor/guide, who would that be and why? This assumes that you have the potential of using magecraft/skills/other cool stuff. (Ex: I would like to learn from Shirou Emiya (Archer)…but not for his tracing magecraft or archery skills. I would rather inherit his legendary cooking skills instead.)**

**Thank you for staying with me through the story and I would appreciate polite and constructive reviews from you guys.**


	15. Interlude: Yang

**I do not own RWBY or Fate universes. Here is an interlude about Yang. I hope you like it.**

* * *

**Interlude: Yang**

* * *

Yang Xiao Long was officially lost.

She surveyed the scene around her warily. She was inside a ruined building that was dimly lit by the dying embers crackling around her. There were no Grimm wandering around here thankfully. But there was something about this particular place that just made her shudder.

Oh, it was definitely dark and cold here. But Yang somehow sensed that the particular chill down her spine was more due to her…ever increasing dread.

Something was approaching her. Or _someone._

"Yang…" A weak voice then caught her attention.

Yang turned her head towards the source of the voice and widened her lilac eyes in response.

It was her partner, Blake. But she wasn't looking very good right now.

Blake was lying on the floor in anguish as her torso had suffered a large gash on it. Her right hand was clutching onto the wound as an attempt to stop the bleeding with little effect. Her eyes were staring out to Yang with terror and desperation in them.

"…Help me…Yang…"

"Blake!" Yang cried out as she ran towards her. "Hold on, I'm coming!"

Then the _monster _suddenly emerged in the distance behind Blake. The red accents in his hair, mask and outfit emitted a surreal glow in the darkness. Then it looked at her and grin at her maliciously.

Yang then felt the hairs stand up on the back of her neck. This monster is _dangerous_. It will kill her. It will kill Blake. It will destroy everything she cared about.

Yang skidded to a short stop as fear gripped onto her. She clenched her fists nervously as she took up a defensive boxing stance. She then feels weights on her wrists and looks down at her arms. Somehow, her signature yellow shotgun gauntlets appeared on her with plenty of ammo in its chambers. Yang grins briefly at this not unwelcomed development and then glares at her opponent with renewed confidence and anger.

"Get away from her!" Yang roared out as she launched a volley of explosive shells at the monster.

Only for her opponent to circumvent through every shot she fired, leaving eerie afterimages in its wake. It was like a ghost.

_No, it was more like a vengeful wraith on the hunt_.

"You cannot have her." The monster finally spoke out as it continued walking towards Blake's position. "She will leave you like everyone else will one way or another."

Yang gritted her teeth in frustration and tried to intercept him from reaching Blake's position.

_Only she wasn't able to…_

Yang glanced down, only to be alarmed. Ribbons of purple and black emerged from the shadows, wrapping around her legs and lower torso and preventing her from moving forward. These ribbons seemed alive as even more joined the fray and tightened their grip on her body. Thus they were _preventing_ her from saving Blake…

Yang frantically tried to pull and tug away from these strange ribbons, but they were too strong for her strength. Yang even tried blasting through the ribbons, but somehow none of her bullets left a mere scratch on them. Desperation caught up to her.

_She was trapped…_

The monster had then arrived at Blake's position unhindered as Yang kept on struggling to get loose from the ribbons entangling her.

_No…_

Yang then could only watch helplessly as the monster slowly drew out his red katana and promptly pierced Blake through the chest, causing her gasp sharply in pain. Blake's amber eyes soon lost their light and her futile struggles soon ceased afterwards. Murky shadows then draped across her and she vanished into nothingness…

_She was dead. Blake was dead. It was his fault. It was your fault. It was your fault….that she left you… alone._

Something broke inside her and her eyes unknowingly turned burning red.

"Diiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiieeeeeeeeee!" Yang cried out with vengeance as she suddenly broke free of the ribbons with the newfound strength of her semblance. She leaped towards the monster itself with her gauntlet poised to promise utter punishment for her partner's murder.

Only for the monster to swiftly grab her by the throat and promptly slam her down onto the floor with inhuman-like strength, causing web-like cracks to form on the ground. She saw stars in her vision.

Yang groaned in pain as her bright yellow aura broke from the impact. The monster chuckled as it slowly hoisted her up in the air by the throat; Yang struggled to break free from its grip.

"So you are the one who Blake has been protecting all this time?" The monster mused as it brought her closer as if to study her. Yang briefly noticed that the monster had crimson red eyes which stared back at her with such great hatred.

"What does Blake mean to you? Why do you care…so much for her?"

"She…is…my…partner…. Partners…are…supposed…to…look…out…for…each…other…" Yang managed to choke out with hot tears. Damn it, why is she answering to this monster that killed Blake…?!

"Then do you know why you were abandoned by her in the end?" The monster questioned with its head slightly tilted at her.

Yang could only continue to struggle for air as the monster's hand only tightened around her throat with every passing second, leaving her unable to speak out.

"Because you are too weak to protect yourself. How can anyone trust you to protect them if you are weak as you are now?" The monster plainly answered for her.

"So it is your fault in the end." The monster shrugged emotionlessly. "So you can die alone."

Then it raised its crimson sword in its other hand as the fire-hot dust blade hissed in the cold air.

Then it lashed the sword at her with utter cold judgment.

_She died alone. Painfully._

* * *

"Gahhhhhh!" Yang awakens up with a gasp. She immediately grasps onto her right arm in comfort, even though she has utterly no idea of why she was doing it in the first place. Yang tries to situate herself while still reeling from the memories of her nightmare.

She is in her room in her bed. She was not there anymore. That was not real. She is safe. She then breathes out heavily. _It was just another nightmare..._

She briefly glances at her alarm clock on her bedside table. It was 4:33 am in the morning. _This is way too early to get up…but I don't feel like sleeping much anyways._

Yang groaned as she swept the blankets away from her and sat up on the side of the bed. Cold sweat drenched her back, dampening her pajamas. She thought back of what happened since the attack on Beacon Academy.

It has been about several weeks since her sister Ruby had left the house with Team JNPR, where she left a letter for Yang saying that they were heading to Mistral to search for answers. The older sister part of her wanted to go with Ruby to protect her. But she was hesitant... Could she protect Ruby if she couldn't protect herself, let alone anyone else?

And that wasn't the only reason of why she wasn't going to Mistral with Ruby.

After they had evacuated the students from Beacon, Yang was able to carry Blake away and leave her at one of the emergency hospital rooms for medical treatment. Then she turns away to briefly check up on Ruby, who was in coma for reasons she didn't know.

When she came back, Blake had disappeared from her cot. There was only a small note saying that she had to leave for unspoken reasons. Yang had frantically searched the entire medical facility for her before finally accepting the ugly truth presented to her.

_Blake ran away from her. She was gone. _

Yang didn't understand why Blake would choose to leave her. Why she would go when she was injured? Why she would not tell her where she was going? Why was she being left alone again?

_Why Blake? When I needed you the most?_

Along with the events that made her…not so stellar before the attack, Yang had finally broken down into tears at that moment. It was only then when Uncle Qrow came and took her away to Patch that she managed to get a hold onto her simmering emotions. So understandably, Yang was tired, confused, angry and depressed for the past several weeks. But more so, she was…very afraid.

She was afraid of being abandoned again.

She didn't understand why Blake would abandon her.

What did she do wrong?

"Argggghhhhhhhhhhh!" Yang scratched her head furiously in frustration before letting out a heavy sigh. "I can't think like this."

Yang then gazes out to the open backyard from her window. "Maybe a little fresh air will clear my head a bit." Then she looked at herself and made a face.

_But first, she needed a change of clothes. And maybe a quick shower._

* * *

Right Jab. Double Left Hook. Right Uppercut. Left Hook. Right Cross.

Yang was practicing her usual boxing drills in the backyard. It was still early morning with the only light being from the broken moon in the sky. It was quiet though and she appreciated it for once. But she wasn't entirely focused in her punches as various thoughts continued to plague her concentration.

Double Left Hook.  
_"So…I want to trust you. I will trust you."_

Feint, then Right Uppercut.

_"I need you to promise me that you regret having to do what you did."_

Right Jab.

_"No…please…"_

Left Uppercut.

_"I'm sorry…It was my fault that he was here…"_

Right Hook.

_"Goodbye…Yang…"_

"RAH!" Yang yelled out in frustration as she slammed her right fist to the side.

_Crunch!_

Yang paused as she slowly turned her head to the right. Her fist had inadvertently punched right through the trunk and left a large gaping hole. The huge tree then groaned as its new hole proved too much for it to support itself, causing it to fall with an audible crash onto the ground.

_Oooooh, Dad is not going to like this._ Yang thought with a slight wince. _Maybe I could hide this somewhere before he wakes up?_

"Ahem…" A voice interrupted her scheming thoughts.

_Or not…_Yang groaned as she slowly turned to the sight of a blond-haired man with a stern look on his face.

"May I ask what you are doing up this early in the morning, young lady?" Taiyang spoke to her with his arms crossed.

"I…couldn't sleep." Yang answered sheepishly.

"And how does that translate into killing that poor tree?"

"Ah…I had a few…things on my mind and I got…distracted." Yang mentally slapped herself for giving such a lame excuse.

"…" Taiyang stared her without a word before sighing to himself. "I understand that you haven't gotten over what has happened to you, and I don't expect things to be alright now. But I don't think taking a tree down is the way to go here, don't you agree?"

Yang felt her ears heat up in embarrassment and looked down. "I'm sorry, dad."

"It's fine. We will just have to clean it up later. However, instead of venting your frustrations on a tree, why don't you spar with a real opponent?" Taiyang said.

"Who? You?" Yang questioned with a raised eyebrow.

"Sure, we could spar a bit. I would like to see if you haven't gotten rusty yet. Or are you not up for the challenge?" Taiyang smirked at her.

Yang would have been more than eager to fight against her dad at any other day, but she felt that there was something more to this spar than what she was initially seeing here. But she did need to blow some steam off…

"Sure, I'm up for it!" Yang answered with a small smile. One spar with her dad couldn't hurt. Right?

* * *

Yang and Taiyang slowly circle each other, arms at the ready. Blue and lilac eyes gaze at each other with sheer focus, as if daring the other to make the first move. There is a brief moment of pause in their movements as the tension between them reaches its peak. Then Taiyang takes the first move by delivering a swift roundhouse kick at Yang, who blocks with her right arm before countering with a kick of her own. Taiyang carefully ducks that and goes in with a flurry of punches that Yang manages to avoid by backing up a few feet. She then closes in and delivers a left hook, followed immediately by a vicious right cross. Taiyang weaves through the hook, but only manages to cross his arms in time to receive the cross, which sends his feet sliding back through the dirt.

"Whoa, you certainly haven't been getting rusty…" Taiyang shakes his arms from the tingling feeling. "Certainly much better than when we last sparred with each other."

"Hey, what could I say? I am stronger than before," Yang preened at the compliment.

"But you are still off balance."

Taiyang suddenly delivers a left hook on her face, catching her off guard and causing her to upper body to spin around. But Yang takes advantage of her turning momentum to deliver a right elbow jab at his face. But prepared for her counter, Taiyang blocks it with his left hand and knocks it away with his right. He backs off suddenly and taunts her with a grin on his face.

"Is that all you got?"

A bit ticked off, Yang then rushes towards him with a straight right punch, but Taiyang simply sidesteps, letting her bypass him. Then Taiyang immediately grabs onto her outstretched arm, and pulls her over his right shoulder. Yang then crashes onto the ground on her back and he chuckles as he leaves her there for a moment.

"You still haven't figured out how to keep your emotions in check."

Yang could only see dark sky as she lay on her back. She could see the sky was lightening up a bit to a paler blue. Then her dad's face appeared above her.

"Are you yanging in there?" Taiyang said teasingly above her with a hint of worry in his voice.

"Yeah, I am just admiring the view down here," Yang said as she got up a sitting position.

"You need to work on not telegraphing your movements like I have told you several times already before," Taiyang lectured her critically. "And you often lose your control of your emotions in battle. You rely on your semblance to win your battles, but it is like a temper tantrum. It's great when you're in a bind, but what happens when your opponent is stronger or better than you? What then?"

"I know…" Yang said while rolling her eyes. Yang already knew about her weaknesses. It was just…too damn hard to keep her emotions in check when she has so much anger in her. And it was much more satisfying beating down opponents like this.

_That was she wanted to think, at least._

"Besides that, are you really okay?" The sound of her dad's voice dragged her out of her thoughts. "You haven't spoken much of what was distracting you this early in the morning."

"I'm fine…I just had a very unpleasant nightmare," Yang answered vaguely, not meeting his eyes.

Taiyang's eyes narrowed a bit. "You know, you could talk to me about whatever is bothering you. Trust me, I know how it feels to have such thoughts bottled inside you and it isn't very pleasant. And I am your dad."

Yang wanted to step away and say she is really fine. That he does not have worry about her. But she was not. And…she could trust her dad at least on this.

"I was too weak." Yang finally confessed to her dad.

"What do you mean?" Her dad's voice said concernedly.

"I was too weak to protect my friends. I was too weak to stop Blake from running away. I was too weak. I was too weak… too weak…" Yang said brokenly as tears formed in her eyes.

Yang's breath then hitched. Her dad's arms were wrapped around her, hugging her close to him. She grabs one of his arms in comfort as she tears up.

"You are not weak. You're Yang Xiao Long, my sunny little dragon." Taiyang brushes her golden-yellow hair carefully. "I don't know why your partner left you. And I don't pretend to know all the details of what is exactly bothering you. But I can tell you that you have great strength within you, just like your mother." Taiyang said to her in a comforting tone.

"My mother? Oh, so now we can talk about her?" Yang said with some sarcasm as she wiped her tears away. But she is feeling a little better. Not much, but better.

Taiyang chuckles. "Well, I think you're an adult right now, right? I believe you are ready to hear some things about her."

"Your mother's best traits are definitely inside you. She was great in so many ways- her strength, her ambition, and her stubbornness to whatever cause she thought were worth fighting for. And believe me, she had a lot of things that she fought about, even for the most silliest things." Taiyang laughed for a bit before continuing. "But…I'm glad that not all of her traits were inside you."

"Why?" Yang asked as she learned about the mother she never knew about.

"She was… a complicated woman. She did have her good points, but her personal flaws were ultimately what broke up Team STRQ, and did a number on our family in the end." Taiyang said vaguely.

"So what makes me so different from her?" Yang said with some annoyance in her voice.

Taiyang ponders for a bit before answering. "Well, you are definitely more cheerful and outgoing than she was, even though I think that comes from your Xiao-Long genes. But you are not arrogant or self-centered as she was. You are certainly prideful, but you don't let that go into your head and forget why you were fighting. And what I can say is you are not her, and I don't think your friend would leave you for that reason."

"More so, you are not alone, Yang. I know that you feel guilty about Raven leaving you for a long time, but I want to say this. It was not your fault to begin with." Taiyang said softly.

Yang froze at that moment. How does he know that? About the very issue that plagued her to this day?

"I know because _I was the same_ when Raven left me. Summer helped make me forget some of that later, but I realized that I wasn't quite over it till she was also gone from my life. I…know that I wasn't in the best of minds when Summer had suddenly disappeared on a mission. I had locked myself up from the family and loathed myself for things I couldn't have really changed on my own. And it still hurts inside. But one day, I woke up and concluded that it wasn't my fault that Raven left the family. I was afraid of being left alone, but I vowed to myself not to lose my sight of the people that I still have to protect around me," Taiyang explained as if reading her own thoughts.

"And I would like to say it was not your fault that your partner left you. And it was never your fault that Raven left you with me. So please forgive yourself." Taiyang said with strength in his voice.

Yang didn't know what exactly happened in that moment, but she felt the weight of her guilt, fear, and anger lessen somewhat. It was still there. But she felt a bit more like herself now. "Thanks, dad. I needed that."

"You're welcome. Now, with that depressing stuff out of the way, why don't we make some breakfast together? I don't know about you, but I'm starving!" Taiyang gave her a wide smile.

Yang watched as her dad stood up and walked towards the house. Yang didn't know what was exactly going on in her life and she wasn't quite over with Blake's disappearance. But Yang finally felt more clear-headed than she had felt after the breach. And even with the searing image of a crimson blade in her mind, she felt she could at least move on.

"Well, are you coming?"

Yang could only smile and ran back to the house to rejoin with her dad. And she silently renewed her convictions to protect her loved ones no matter what.

_The bright yellow sun finally broke through the horizon as she entered the house._

* * *

**I decided that there should be a change in pace in the story and I incorporated something from the outside world for that purpose. I chose Yang for this interlude as that she is probably one of the most affected characters from Gray crashing down on the plot, so I have pondered on this for several weeks. Yang is actually quite an interesting character to write about and I still think I needed more time to think about this. That being said, I am sure there are going to be a quite few people who will have some criticism about this interlude. I understand that, but please keep your reviews polite and constructive.**

**I will say that I do really take time to study various elements of each universe, yet I am also invested in story plot in the end. But I acknowledge the fact that as a new writer, I have plenty of room to improve. I mostly write things down without pause for hours, and I simply tweak a few things here and there to make it flow better. And I have changed my expected chapter release to biweekly ones partly due to this reason.**

**An interesting thing I would have to note about my interludes so far is that I seem to start out with a dream of some sorts. But I would say that some of those dreams and the interludes themselves do contain a few hints of what is going to happen later in the story…**

**A side note: A fun question for you guys. What types of weapons would you like to combine to make a new one and what would you call it? (Ex: I would like to combine a railgun and a heavy broadsword, and I would call it Photon Crusher.)**

**As always, please favorite and/or follow this story if you wish to come back and continue to read this story.**


	16. Ch 12: How I Met My Mother-in-Law

**I do not own the RWBY or Fate universes. Apologies for the late chapter, but I will try to get the next chapter out earlier. Curse that writer's block.**

* * *

**Chapter Twelve: How I Met My Mother-in-Law**

* * *

There were countless failures and incomplete summons in the coming weeks.

Success can be quite elusive. I know this fact all too well in my past.

It may seem that world is against you. It can be cruel and unreasonable. Most people would probably be resigned to their fate. But Weiss was different. She refused to accept that she could not summon. She sought to prove the world that it judged her wrong in the end. And I believed in her.

So she kept persisting on it. The frequency of her failures had steadily decreased over time. Her incomplete summons became more whole and lifelike. And she kept pushing forward to shatter her own limits.

Then one day…

A large white glyph rotated steadily on the ground, emitting a blinding light. Then a giant white figure slowly rose straight from it. The said figure resembled a full-armored knight and was carrying a large two-handed broadsword. It was initially in a standing position, yet it immediately knelt down on one knee and planted its sword on its right side. A complete Arma Gigas was now kneeling in front of its summoner as it was waiting for her orders. Weiss gazed at the summon for a moment, then she turned her head towards me silently. Her face revealed a tired, yet content smile to me.

"Well done," I spoke out solemnly, even as my own slight smile betrayed my true feelings inside.

"Thank you, Gray," Weiss said as she wiped the sweat from her brow. "Although I don't think I would have done this easily without your help."

"Nonsense. You already had the potential inside you and you are trained hard for this power. I merely provided a few pointers for you. The rest was because of you," I dismissed her statement.

Weiss didn't reply back to me, but if the blush on her face was any indication, she must have liked my compliment. But it was the truth. I was proud of her.

But it would be foolish if she didn't keep up her training on her summoning at this point. I had a quite few ideas on how to improve on her summoning from here. It was given she needs to keep practicing on her summoning control, but summoning speed is also essential here. I would prefer if she could reduce her summoning time in a split second as her enemy would not wait for her to summon in battle. I also wondered if she could practice controlling multiple summons at once and experiment with summoning other Grimm that she had slain before. There is quite a lot of untapped potential with her summoning ability…should I double our training sessions in the future? There were also other untested training experiments I had in mind for her…

Then Weiss interrupted my musing thoughts.

"By the way, Gray? What have you been doing for your own training?"

"Hmm…? Oh, I been mostly improving my swordplay and trying to self-learn some magecraft spells," I answered her half-absentmindly.

"Magecraft? You mean like magic?"

I swiftly twisted my head around to a confused Weiss. I then voiced my exact thoughts at that moment aloud. "Did I not tell you about magecraft before?"

"No…" Weiss said with a deadpan tone.

"Huh, that topic must have slipped from my mind then… Hmm, it would take more time to explain it fully, but magecraft is kind of like magic. But it is also a little different," I hummed to myself thoughtfully.

"Would you care to elaborate on that?" Weiss asked me, her interest now peaked. I guess since I already proved that magic is real, she seems to have more interest in its details.

"Thaumaturgy, also called magecraft, is using magical energy to recreate phenomena that is also possible though science. The end result is still the same, but the process in doing so is magical. For example, someone can use magecraft to create fire. But a normal person can do the same by gathering tinder and igniting it with a match or lighter. Do you understand this so far?" I explained, getting a look of understanding from Weiss.

I then continued with her affirmation. "Magic, also called True Magic, is the creation of true miracles in a given era as they are things that are unachievable through any amount of resources or time. True Magic is something that can be attain by reaching the Root, or the origin of everything in the universe including magic. Some examples of True Magic include parallel world travel, time travel, and creation out of nothingness. But it is probably not necessary for you know all of the details."

"What? But I still wish to learn more about it…" Weiss said with some dissatisfaction in her voice.

"You should remember that magic over in this world has different concepts and systems, so don't take everything I say as the truth here," I reminded her. "That being said, if you want to learn more details about magecraft, I suggest asking me at another time as the topic can be extensive in information. I can't promise to know all the answers to your questions, but I will answer them as best as I could. Understood?"

Weiss nodded, albeit reluctantly, at my statement. "Then let's back on point, what kind of magecraft have you been practicing?"

"Well, in terms of actual magecraft ability, I am pretty much a self-taught novice at this point. But I have been practicing basic magecraft regarding material transmutation to some degree of success."

"Really?"

"Yes, although it isn't very much due to my limited magecraft knowledge. But do you still wish to see it?"

After seeing her nod with barely-concealed eagerness, I decided to give her a demonstration of one of my recently learned magecraft skills.

_Tracing._

* * *

So I started. **"Trace on."**

A small spark from my magic core produced a small tendril of pure magical energy, which I grasped on it. Then I manipulated and guided the flow of magical energy through my body with the help of magic circuits. Then it reached into my right hand and visible cyan-blue sparks crackled within it. I then closed my eyes and recited the mental process of the spell.

**_Judging the concept of creation._**

It is a steel longsword. It was forged for battle, yet it was nameless.

**_Hypothesizing the basic structure._**

It was made with a steel blade of 36 inches in length and about two and half inches in width. It had a standard cruciform hilt for two-handed use with a pommel at the end.

**_Duplicating the composition material._**

It was made with high-quality crucible steel with very small amounts of impurities.

**_Imitating the skill of its making._**

It was made by melting pig iron in a crucible. Then the steel was poured into a cast into steel bars. It was then heated up and hammered furiously by a Vacuo craftsman. The blade was shaped and sharpened. The steel hilt and pommel was then attached to it. The sword was lastly polished and oiled.

**_Sympathizing the experience of its growth._**

It was made with the intention as a weapon for war. But it never saw battle and was forgotten by its creator. The sword was then bought by a certain merchant and traded many hands until it was finally claimed by the Schnee family, where it would rest to this day.

**_Reproducing the accumulated years._**

It was about created 81 years ago. The first 22 years saw it gathering dust in the storage. It was then found and traded for the remainder of the time till 33 years ago. That is when Nicolas Schnee had bought it from a Vacuo merchant with several other weapons. It was then used later as a display weapon in the Schnee mansion.

**_Excelling every manufacturing process._**

Recreating this unsung and neglected sword by combining these small yet vital steps…

**_…Complete._**

* * *

I opened my eyes to see a newly formed steel longsword in my hand. The sword had weight to its form and didn't look transparent. I then gave it a few light swings in the air, where it whooshed through the air. And it seemed to be stable and solid. It was a success this time…

I then rubbed my head from the slight headache from the information packed into the mundane sword. Just like I thought, tracing Noble Phantasm might be out of the question as the information overload would probably put me in a coma if that was possible. Mundane objects were somehow easier for me as long as they didn't carry any unfamiliar elements in them. Believe me, I tried tracing Dust by itself, and that wasn't fun. All I got for my troubles was a piercing headache from trying to process the strange information from the Dust crystal. Something tells me that Dust wasn't natural for a reason…

The time constraints for the process also made it difficult for me to create certain items on the fly, especially during combat. And the mental strain also made it difficult for me to trace more than few items at a time. I was hoping to lessen the time limits and mental energy needed for tracing as I keep getting familiar with certain objects.

I seriously envied Shirou with his reality marble in this aspect…

Therefore, tracing wasn't exactly very useful to me in this case as that I can't exactly spam numerous weapons or create a noble phantasm for combat... But it could be useful in cases where I could create temporary objects in certain situations. Not that the temporary condition mattered much to me as the mundane objects that I had created so far are still around for weeks… It was rather peculiar.

Eh. I had other important things to worry about.

Weiss was now looking at my newly formed sword with keen interest. "Did you just create that sword out of nowhere…? Then is that True Magic? I did remember you were saying before that creating things out of nothing is one type of True Magic."

"Not exactly. This sword is not made from nothing; it was made with magical energy. It is called projection, and it utilizes the caster's mental image of the object to create it. However, it is normally useless in most cases," I corrected her.

"Useless?" Weiss said in confusion. "How would that be useless? I imagine such a spell would have incredible applications in many situations."

I chuckled. "You would be right…, except the projected object in question is much weaker than the real thing and it would only probably last a few minutes at best. And it is not quite as energy efficient as other magecraft spells for the same result. As a result, the most probable situation for the usage of the spell would be in magecraft rituals that require object sacrifice in an emergency."

"But you said that it is normally useless in most cases…" Weiss's eyes narrowed in thought. "Then does that mean the spell that you used wasn't normal projection?"

I gave her a small smile at her deduction. "You are sharp. Yes, the spell I used is an advanced form of projection called Tracing. It utilizes the caster's knowledge of the object's history and experience to recreate the said object. With that, the projected object can last for hours or even days depending on the object itself and can be really close to the actual thing."

As I said that, I handed over the sword to Weiss. "This sword is a copy of one of the steel longswords that I found in this mansion. Can you tell that this is a fake from just looking at it?"

Weiss held the sword carefully in her hands while scrutinizing it closely. She ran her fingers across the flat of the blade. "Unbelievable…, I can't tell if this was a fake sword unless you had told me. It has the weight and feel of a sword."

Weiss swung the sword against some nearby dust-projected blocks, shearing through them with ease. "And it cuts like an actual sword."

"Well, probably no one except the original wielders or creator could tell if the weapon is fake or not," I mused aloud.

"So can you recreate any object you have seen?" Weiss asked me as she passed back the sword back to me.

"No, I still have limits on my tracing. I could only trace mundane objects in question with ease, and things like Dust and living beings I cannot recreate for certain reasons. And objects with considerable history and weight would probably need more time and analysis to trace," I explained to her as I dismissed the sword itself.

"That is a pity… I would imagine that Dust supply problems would be solved more easily if you could just create temporary Dust on the fly," Weiss said to me thoughtfully. I would have agreed with her sentiment if it wasn't for the uneasiness I felt about the mysterious nature of Dust.

"Anyways, what other magecraft spells do you know currently?" Weiss questioned me after breaking away from her line of thought.

I was about to open my mouth to answer, but someone had coughed loudly just then.

Weiss and I both turned around to the source of the unknown person. We then see Klein standing by the training room entrance as he was waiting for our conversation to end.

Seeing that he had gotten our attention, Klein then cleared his throat. "Pardon the interruption, Miss Schnee and Mister Saber. I did not wish to cut your conversation short, but I carry a message from the Madam. Miss Schnee, your mother wishes to see you at her garden as soon as possible."

Weiss's face had dimmed a bit upon hearing that.

After a moment of silence, Weiss finally managed to answer him politely. "…Thank you, Klein. Tell her that I will be there in a moment."

"As you wish, Miss Schnee," Klein said as he bowed to Weiss and promptly left us alone.

I blinked at this new development. I haven't really seen Weiss's mother for the whole time I was here in the Schnee mansion. I have caught many glimpses of her father and on occasion, her younger brother Whitney. But the matriarch of the Schnee family remains to be quite elusive to my sight. It is very likely that she doesn't go outside that often for a reason.

I then glanced worriedly at Weiss, where she carried a faraway look in her eyes. Something tells me that Weiss had a complicated relationship with her mother. But what is their relationship exactly?

"Is there something wrong, Weiss?" I asked her with some concern.

Weiss blinked for a moment and glanced at me. "Sorry, I was just blanking out for a moment there… There is nothing wrong, Gray… I just need to see my mom for a few minutes. Could you wait for me here while I go see her?" Weiss said with a weak smile. Before I could answer her though, she walked away without awaiting for my reply then.

I gazed upon her retreating figure with a small frown on my face. From what I knew from the show, Weiss's mother was an alcoholic due to the dismal circumstances surrounding her marriage and the Schnee family. I don't know much about her backstory or character, but I doubted that her mother was in any mental state to look after her children. But I have a feeling that Weiss doesn't hate her mother for that, not in the same way as her father at least.

…

…

…

Okay, so I am in a dilemma here.

I really wanted to help Weiss with some of her family issues, but I admit that I wasn't better with my own family issues experiences. I was definitely no therapist either. But that doesn't mean I didn't want to help her out. What kind of Servant would I be if I just watch my Master suffer like this?

So screw the idea of this being a private family manner. I fully intend to get into the bottom of this issue.

…

…

…

Ugh. I scratched my head in frustration. That being said, how do I help Weiss as I am right now? I can't exactly barge into their meeting like a brute. This needs a little finesse planning…

I racked my head for ideas that could work. My goal is to somehow help repair Weiss's relationship with her mother, while also help fixing her mother's own problems. But how do I get them to take the first step forward…

I stopped thinking for a moment as an idea popped in my head and I pondered upon its feasibility. Then I smiled to myself. While I can't exactly reveal my existence as a Servant to anyone, I think I do have a way to help out Weiss. Or at the very least, support her.

_I just need to change my outfit a bit here… _

* * *

I traversed through the hallways of the Schnee manor while I tried looking like a normal person. But it is a little hard to be a bit inconspicuous when you have the heads of maids turning. It seems that my Charisma Skill apparently makes me a lady-killer for some reason. Fortunately, it also seems that my seemingly aloof and firm disposition apparently prevents them from gaining the courage to try to speak, or worse, flirt with me. I wouldn't have known how to deal with that kind of situation then.

I just hope that there weren't too many rumors flying around in the mansion after this…

As I was relying on my bond with Weiss to locate her position, I would like to note that I wasn't wearing my usual clothing right now. Otherwise, I wouldn't be so comfortable going around in physical form. Not that it helped my current dilemma much…

I was currently in a male version of Saber's café clothing. It came with a buttoned up white shirt, a black vest, a blue tie, black pants and shoes, and soft white gloves. It obviously didn't have the same sexy appeal as the female counterpart, but it was the type of clothing that most girls would have swooned over if it was worn by a handsome male. It was that evident as one of the younger maids evidently fainted with a goofy smile on her face when I briefly glanced towards her way.

_…_

_…_

_…_

_This B-Rank Charisma Skill is way too dangerous…_

As I neared towards the opaque glass door to what appears to be a courtyard of some sort, I could clearly hear some voices talking to each other in the distance. One voice I recognized as Weiss's, but the other voice was more matured, yet sounded… tired.

That must be her mother.

I am a bit ashamed of this fact, but I was naturally a curious and nosy person. So I carefully eavesdropped on the conversation after making sure that no one else was around. It might give some context of what to expect from Weiss's mother.

"…Weiss, know that I am glad that you are okay. My heart nearly broke when I heard the news about the attack on Beacon. But you are now safe here…with us," Weiss's mother said.

"Mom, I know the dangers of being a huntress. So I trained hard for this." Weiss sighed.

"Nonetheless, I don't want to lose you so early… So I decided that you can stay here and continue your training as the SDC heiress under your father's personal wishes. Or attend Atlas Academy if you are still insistent of becoming a huntress. Either way, you will quite close to your home if anything does happens."

"…What?" Weiss spoke out in disbelief at her mother's decision. I was also confused. Why would her mother want Weiss to stay here? Surely, she knows why Weiss left the mansion, right?

"I was reluctant to let you go to Beacon Academy from the very beginning. Not just because the path of a huntress is not safe, but I initially thought you would have joined Atlas Academy like your elder sister. Winter had already defied your father's wishes in her decision to be an Atlas Specialist instead being of an heiress. But at the very least, she would have been able to look after you there. So when you went to Beacon Academy instead, I was worried that I would lose you there without anyone dependable to look after you. And the events of Beacon had me rather… shaken about your safety." Her mother continued as if not hearing Weiss's apparent disbelief.

"But I am capable huntress. And I am not alone. I do have my team to look after me," Weiss protested to her.

"Nonetheless, it would relieve me if you were to at least attend Atlas Academy. If your father would let you do so…" Her mother said with a melancholy tone.

"But I still have my team…"

"Nonsense. You can have a new team over here in Atlas, where it is safe and close to our family. Besides, I am sure that your old teammates would not miss you…they may even have forgotten about you," Her mother dismissed her concerns.

I winced. That is not going to go well with Weiss. You can insult her. But you should never insult her friends in front of her.

"What did you say…" Weiss said with evident anger rising in her voice.

It looks like it is about time I intervened into this conversation before this gets out of hand. I knocked against the door three times sharply with my knuckles.

The conversation had paused at that moment. Someone then came to the door and cracked it opened. It was Klein.

His eyes widened at the sight of me. "Mister Saber…What are you doing here…?"

I then held a finger to my mouth to hush him. "May you please grant me entrance? I am here to help Weiss out here."

Seeing his still-skeptical look on his face, I then looked straight into his eyes with utter resolve. "Please trust me on this."

Klein stared at me for an intense moment. Then he nodded firmly and stepped aside for me. I graciously thank him with a nod as I stepped through the doorway.

_And I entered into a garden. And what a beautiful garden it was._

* * *

I silently marveled at the garden itself as Klein led me to where Weiss was. It must have cost a pretty Lien for the Schnee family. I doubt that there were any other gardens that were as comparable as this one in the entirety of Remnant.

White-blue cobblestones paths weaved throughout the entire garden. Small stone statues of various Grimm can be found everywhere as artistic decorations. The sound of water trickling can be heard from fountains gushing out small streams. The entire place was covered with a decorated glass canopy, likely to keep majority of the rain and snow out and let the bright sun shine through for the plants.

But there were two things that seemed to define this garden the most.

Flowers. So many flowers. Flowers of all different species. Lilies? Roses? Violets? Tulips? They were all there. The symphony of colors was of a rainbow, with harmonizing and contrasting colors pleasing the eye, no matter where you place your eye on. Reds. Whites. Pinks. Blues. I could smell the sweet and mellow scents as the occasional breeze would cause the flowers to sway gently. It would be not an exaggeration to call this a second Garden of Avalon.

But the quietness was the second aspect of this garden. Despite of all of the flowers here, there was nothing else that lived here. No birds or bees were present in this garden. Not even the sound of a stray, fluttering butterfly was present. It may be because this unnatural quietness, but I felt the beautiful garden was also sad…as if it was reflecting the mood of the person that resided here the most.

Speaking of that person…

"Who are you? Are you one of the servants?"

The person who was asking was obviously Weiss's mother. She was currently lounging on a couch that was placed near the center fountain of the garden, which sported the white Schnee snowflake sculpture in the middle of it. She carried a wine glass in her hand, where there was a table stand next to her with additional bottles of alcohol.

As for the person herself, she had the same signature Schnee blue eyes and white hair as Weiss. She has a few wrinkles under her eyes, but you could tell that she was once a very gorgeous woman in her younger days…and was still arguably beautiful now. Her hair was kept in a short ponytail that rested on the left side of her shoulder. She wore a white cravat with a light purple jacket, but didn't wear a lot of jewelry as I expected from her position. She did have a silver brooch set with a red stone on her neck and earrings, but that was about it. But perhaps more notably, she carried a heavy aura in her that gave away her seemingly hidden depression.

Right, I was getting distracted here. I should first answer her questions, but I also wasn't going to ignore basic etiquette here.

So I stood up in a straight posture with my left arm behind me and right arm across my front. Then I bowed to her. "Greetings, Madam Schnee. My name is Saber Pendragon. It is a great pleasure to meet you."

Then I noticed that Weiss was sitting in a silver chair near her mother. She could only gape at me with both equal amounts of surprise and panic on her face. Weiss quickly recomposed herself before her mother could see, but her eyes kept shooting ice daggers at me. There was no doubt she will demand a proper explanation from me later… Oh well, I was kind of expecting that.

I continued on with my introduction. "And I am indeed a servant, Madam Schnee. I was recently assigned as a bodyguard for Miss Schnee here under Klein's recommendation."

Weiss's mother looked at Klein as to affirm my words. "Is this true, Klein?"

"It is, Madam Schnee." Klein said politely to her. "I was worried about the safety of the young miss, so I had Mister Saber here to look after her."

"Interesting… But that begs the next question…why have you intruded upon my quarters?"

"My apologies, I was searching for Miss Schnee when I found her here. The young Miss had suddenly left me behind with a few words, so I was worried about her safety. It was not my intention to interrupt your conversation with her, Madam Schnee," I said with a straight face.

"Is that so? Pardon me, but you seem too young to be a servant in this mansion. And I find it unlikely that you could protect my daughter as she is a huntress-in-training," Weiss's mother glanced at me skeptically.

"While your concerns are valid, you may rest your worries there, Madam Schnee. Although I appear to be younger than Miss Schnee here, I am actually in my very early twenties." I said as Weiss looked at me with no small amount of surprise. "And I am more than capable of protecting Miss Schnee here. After all, I was the one who protected her when Beacon fell."

Her mother then turned to Weiss. "Weiss, is that true?"

Well, it was technically true. I was her summon that took out that Altesian Paladin back then.

Weiss managed to calm herself down to answer. "Yes, Saber managed to help me fight off the Grimm and Altesian Paladins around me with ease. He is a capable fighter of his own right and I trust him."

An awkward moment of silence loomed over us as Weiss uncharacteristically finished her statement there without more details. Weiss probably didn't say anything more than that as she seemed uncomfortable sharing more details about the event to her mother. It is understandable from my experience.

But her mother seemed quite unsatisfied with her daughter's brief account of the events. So I saw my chance here to take things to a different direction.

"I could recite my own account of the events if you wish to know more what happened that day," I spoke out to her mother, breaking the silence. Weiss glanced at me with mixed feelings of relief from my intervention and suspicion as what I was planning to do.

"…Yes, I think I would like to know what happened."

So I told Weiss's mother about the events of Beacon in a mostly truthful manner while intentionally keeping out a few key details to make it sound a little realistic. I reenacted the scene where I joined forces with Weiss to help her fend off an Altesian Paladin as she was protecting a downed classmate of hers. I commended Weiss in how she managed to fight off numerous Grimm with her trusted partner to rescue a trapped classmate in the tower. I also explained how Weiss managed to escort the injured with some help in a professional manner from Beacon. I admitting downplayed my own actual achievements and raised Weiss's own, but it got my points across and it was more believable to others.

Unintentionally, I found that I was a very good storyteller if the rapt attention that I received from everyone in the garden was any indication. Even Weiss, who was the only one here who knew the full truth, couldn't help but listen to my stories with engrossed interest. Weiss's mother didn't even sip from her wine glass for the entire time. Was this my Charisma Skill at work? Or was there something else going on here?

As I finished my story there, Weiss's mother studied me for a moment before she put down her wine glass on the tablestand to speak. "…I cannot say for sure if your account of events are true or not. But what I can say is that you do have some eloquence in your storytelling at least. It helps that my daughter here seems to hold high praise for you as well," Weiss's mother said slowly as Weiss fidgeted nervously nearby.

"I know a lot of stories that I could tell you, Madam Schnee. But they are mostly tales about heroes and magic. But I believe that Miss Schnee here has more…realistic stories that she can tell you about. I am sure you will enjoy hearing them," I said with a wry smile.

Weiss was suddenly caught off-guard at my sudden deflection of the conversation to her. "Wait… what do you mean I have stories to tell?"

"Regardless of what you might think about her huntress career, it is true that she has a lot of stories to tell about herself and her close friends. Very interesting ones indeed…" I continued speaking to her mother, ignoring Weiss's attempts to get my attention.

"Gra… er...Saber! I don't think my mom would appreciate hearing about my time at Beacon," Weiss said nervously as she attempted to salvage the situation here. Too bad Weiss doesn't know how much I exactly knew…

"Oh? I don't think she has learned about the time that you and your team had greatest food fight that Beacon has ever seen," I said mischievously to her. "And wrecked the entire cafeteria in the process."

"Saber!" Weiss blushed in utter embarrassment.

"You know, I never recall about what you actually did while in Beacon. I had heard some details from Klein, but it seems that I haven't heard the entire story," Her mother commented with a raised brow.

With my insistent encouragement and suggestions, Weiss eventually spilled out some of the stories about her time at Beacon Academy. And boy, even I was surprised at the antics that Team RWBY had found themselves in. I mean, I don't understand how Weiss and her team managed to blow up not just one, but _three_ bar establishments on their first girls' night out. Then again, I would probably place most of the blame on a certain person for this…

* * *

_Meanwhile in a certain place in Patch…_

"Achoo!" Yang sneezed as she was brushing her golden hair in the bathroom.

"Am I coming down with a cold?" Yang wondered aloud as she put down her brush to wipe her nose off. Then her lilac eyes narrowed. "Or is someone out there talking shit about me…?"

* * *

_Back in the Schnee mansion…_

I shivered for a moment before continuing to question with Weiss about one of her stories.

"So you were telling me that you got into three bar fights in the same night? And somehow caused three fires to break out by accident? It makes me wonder how you guys got off so easy in the first place…" I said incredulously. I knew that Ozpin was more lenient on Team RWBY than other students in the first place, but this is just plain ridiculous.

"We didn't. Detention for two and half weeks in a row. I swear that I'll suddenly find myself called up because Yang set another bar on fire during a bar fight in a few years time," Weiss grumbled to herself.

"But according to your account, wasn't it your fault for using Fire Dust in one of the bar fights?" I questioned her.

Weiss's face turned red. "S-shut up! I didn't really think about it that much back then. It was in the name for justice! Those brutes were harassing us back then!"

"I am not saying that you were in the wrong. But couldn't you have at least used a less destructive Dust type? I was pretty sure you prefer Ice Dust in the first place…" I said to her teasingly.

"Ugh…" Weiss buried her face in her hands from the embarrassment. I briefly laughed at her predicament before pausing for a moment. I kinda forgot that I wasn't the only one here with Weiss.

For the most part, Weiss's mother was mainly silent for the entire time as we were talking. She looked at us with a strange look that was not quite confusion, but close to it. I would say she was a little more than curious at our rather informal engagement with each other.

I cleared my throat right then as I recomposed myself. "Apologies, for my lack of informality and discipline here, Madam Schnee."

"No…, it is quite alright. It has been a long time since I saw my daughter like this…" Weiss's mother trailed off in deep thought. I was hoping by now that she would be able to open up a bit more with her daughter and make the first step.

"Weiss, you may leave now. I have some… important matters that I need to attend to." Weiss's mother suddenly spoke out. But it seems as my hopes were too optimistic right now.

Weiss looked surprised at the abrupt ending of our conversation, but her expression then sank afterwards. "…Yes, mom." Weiss said with some resignation as she slowly got up from her chair.

As Weiss began to walk away, I was going to follow her when a voice stopped me for a moment.

"Mister Saber, would you mind staying here for a moment?" Weiss's mother said causing me to freeze in mid-step.

My mind raced. Why would she be so interested in me? Did I say something wrong here?

Weiss's worried ice blue eyes met my mine. I then reassured her with a small smile. Weiss slowly turned around reluctantly as she seemed to understand that I was going to okay.

I _hope_ I was going to okay.

"Please make yourself comfortable," Weiss's mother motioned me to take a seat. I sat down on the chair that Weiss previously occupied as comfortably as I can.

Weiss's mother picks up her wine of glass and slowly swirls the contents around. She sips it slowly before placing the now empty glass on her table stand. Then she focuses her attention on me.

"Saber, was it?"

"Yes, that is my preferred name." I answered her. But why do I feel a foreboding doom coming towards me? From where? An enemy? No…, it was coming from _her._

"Then what are your intentions towards my daughter?" Weiss's mother said as the temperature in the room seemingly dropped. The metaphorical chill in the air caused shivers down my spine.

I gulped nervously. I am starting to regret having Weiss leave me alone with her mother here. At least I have Klein nearby, in case things get hairy. I am sure that he can help pacify Weiss's mother at that point.

_But wait, Klein, why do you have a pale face? And are you… attempting to retreat from here? Please don't leave me here alone with her! Come back!_

* * *

**So, yeah. Gray has finally met Willow Schnee and things are going to change. I had very little information about Willow Schnee for obvious reasons. Yet some of the RWBY canon information that I do know wasn't up to my liking and I had some problems with it. (cough…DC Comics… cough…why?). So I thought I would make a few changes here and there regarding her character and life. **

**So Gray can do tracing. Tracing isn't something unique to Shirou Emiya and Archer for it is still projection magecraft. What is unique about their tracing is due to their same sword element-origin alignment and reality marble. They can store information on bladed weapons that they have seen (sword alignment) and store it in their reality marble. The stored weapons can then be 'pulled' from their reality marble when they are traced instantly. Gray doesn't have that advantage. It takes more time and analysis to trace objects for him. So creating certain noble phantasms and spamming numerous weapons are currently impossible for him. **

**A side note: If there was any heroic spirit that you would give a big hug, who would that be and why? (Ex: I would probably give a hug to Mordred. She probably hasn't gotten a single hug in her entire life. That is a sad thought. And she is also quite moe…)**

**This chapter was way longer than I intended it to be, but I guess it worked out fine. As for you guys who are waiting for the action to come up, I think it would be about three-five more chapters about Gray and Weiss, then a few interludes regarding the outside world, and setting the stage up for Volume 4-5. So be a little patient here…**


	17. Ch 13: A Mother's Lost Love

**I do not own the RWBY or Fate universes. Here is the next chapter.**

* * *

**Chapter 13: A Mother's Lost Love**

* * *

I seriously want to curse at Klein for abandoning me to this fate. That is so not cool, man.

But I understand him. Weiss's mother is currently terrifying to face right now, and I imagine that it wasn't common reaction from her to begin with. If anyone else was in his shoes, they would probably have done the same thing and run away for their lives.

On the other hand, he did abandon me alone with her…

_Traitor…_

So I will have some serious words with him about the true meaning of loyalty in the face of danger. That being said…

"I'm afraid that I do not understand your question, Madam Schnee," I said calmly, even as my twitching ahoge betrayed my uneasiness inside. "I do sense some concern in your question, but I do not know what I have done so far to justify that."

I scowled inwardly as my eyes glanced up at my waving ahoge. It may look cute, but I knew that ahoges are generally for anime characters that are stupid in some way. I don't think Saber was ever dim-witted, and I am certainly the same as her. I absolutely refuse to think otherwise!

Weiss's mother gives me a slightly quizzical look with her ice blue eyes, but otherwise held her expression neutral. Then she sighs heavily, releasing some of the pressure that I felt from her presence.

"Then let me elaborate my question for you. What are you to my daughter? Despite of the fact that you may be her personal bodyguard, it does not warrant the fact that you two seem much closer than what is required professionally. My daughter obviously trusts you, but I have a feeling that her trust in you is more than just based on your devoted servitude."

Interesting. Weiss's mother was quite perceptive, not unlike her daughter in many ways. It makes me wonder how she would have turned out if she didn't lose herself in her alcoholism and depression. Maybe the woman in front of me now was just a shadow of the person that she once was.

But speaking of her question, what am I exactly to Weiss? It was certainly not the first time I bounced this certain question in my mind and probably wouldn't be the last. I am certainly not normal acquaintance to her, but I do not think I am as close to her yet as her teammates. I certainly help her a lot in terms of training, yet there are still secrets between us. I am a Servant to her who will support her wishes, but I do have my own opinions and will disagree at times. But I certainly care for her not just as my Master, and Weiss probably feels the same way about me as a Servant… So if I were to describe our current relationship with each other, it would be…

"I… believe I am someone who looks out for her because she needs it. Not just as a protector or a guardian because I cannot look after her forever. I am more like her partner to make sure that she doesn't regret the path that she chose for herself," I answered slowly.

"A partner?" Willow repeated the words in confusion.

"Well, our relationship is probably more complex than that," I scratched my cheek with my finger. "But I can tell you that your daughter is carrying much responsibility on her shoulders in her chosen path and she will need all the help that she can get. And I am willing to fight against the world for her if it means that I can let her smile to the very end."

When I chose to become a Servant, I… knew that I was trading my own freedom for power. Servants may be one of the most powerful beings, but in the end, they are always bound to someone or something for such power. I believe that no sane person in my world would choose to become a Servant unless they did not wish to live as a human being anymore. And I already knew that I would become something that was no longer human, but an existence that was even above magic itself. I also knew that I could not stay in the world forever for Weiss as much as I liked to. Nor can I pretend to be free-willed as I never was anyways.

But it means that I could make things better for her once I leave this world…then I think I will have no regrets about my decision. I already knew what I was getting into and I intend to make the best of things as I can now. That is what I truly wish to believe in. I believe Saber would have done the same thing in my place.

Weiss's mother drummed her fingers in thought after hearing my response. Then she spoke out afterwards.

"So you are not after my daughter for her status or beauty?"

I blinked in confusion at her question. What does Weiss's prestige or looks have to do with this conversation? I honestly didn't care about it, but I should answer her appropriately as she seemed to be waiting for a genuine answer.

So I answered carefully. "It does not matter to me if Weiss has status or not. She is still the same person regardless of her standing. And while she is objectively a very attractive woman in my eyes, it is not the reason why I befriended her in the first place. I admired her because she had something that I wish to have myself."

"And what would that be?" Weiss's mother asked sharply. But I didn't falter under her pressure.

"She has her own will. While I am quite stubborn myself, she possesses character that wants to become a better person and she does not let obstacles take her down easily. And I can see that she has done that many times. In a way, I feel as though I am learning more from just seeing her," I said solemnly as I held her gaze firmly.

"But if there was one thing I liked about her, it will be the fact that she is indeed a good person inside despite of her flaws. But even with her flaws, I wouldn't mind helping her out without a second thought. Perhaps there are other people who may be better than her out there, but I don't get to choose who or when I meet those people. But I do get to choose who I get to hold onto, and I chose Weiss when I met her. And I do not and will not regret it."

Weiss's mother had stayed silent throughout my answer, though she seemed to be in great thought. I may be wrong about this, but her eyes seem to express relief… and intrigue?

Weiss's mother eventually broke the silence. "…I see. I can see why my daughter holds you to such high esteem. And why Klein is willing to trust such a stranger near her. But to think that you would not see her in that way…"

I raised my brow in befuddlement. See Weiss in what way? Did I say something different than what she was expecting? Did I misunderstand her question here?

Weiss's mother closed her eyes for a moment. "Nevertheless, I would like to apologize for my initial rudeness there,"

"No, no! It is really no trouble at all! Really, I find myself at ease at the fact that you care so much about your daughter," I said hastily.

Why do I feel so uncomfortable about this? Was it because I am more used to being at the apologizing side?

Weiss's mother laughed hollowly at my reaction. "Hahaha…But I am terrible mother nonetheless."

I frowned at her sudden depressive state. "But Weiss does truly care about you."

Weiss's mother cast her gaze depressingly on the ground. "It does not matter. It is not like I have much love to give back anymore nowadays. I even made her angry at me during our conversation together and I don't even know why…"

Oh. So that is why she seems interested, and at the same time irritated about me. She must saw our relationship was closer than what she expected, and wants to know why Weiss was like this. Was this envy and longing of a mother who lost her love?

"If I may, Madam Schnee, but I must admit that I have heard part of your conversation. And from what I have just heard before, I can explain to you why she got angry," I said carefully.

It was subtle, but Weiss's mother perked up attentively. "…Why?"

Seeing that I got her full, undivided attention, I then proceeded into my explanation. "She may be hiding it, but she was a lonely person for most of her life, not to mention heavy burdens she carries alone. Talking badly about her is one thing. Yet talking badly about her friends at Beacon is another. It was her friends that ultimately freed her from her loneliness and made her better person in the end. I daresay that she would defend her friends to the end; even at the expense of herself."

"…I thought she would just like Winter, whose own teammates went their own ways. That is why I thought it wouldn't matter to her if she had a different team as long as she became a huntress she dreamed of… Oh Weiss, what have I done… " Came a small murky whisper after a while.

"It is alright. Weiss cannot hate you forever," I said comfortingly. Honestly, Weiss's mother is truly pitiful as she doesn't know how to interact with her children anymore at this point.

But that is why I am here. To make things better.

"But I am her mother. How can I be their mother if I don't understand or care for my children anymore?" Weiss's mother said with a tinge of sadness and regret in her voice.

"Perhaps. But lamenting in your regrets is not going to fix things either," I stated things firmly to her.

"Then what should I do?! What can I do?! I have nothing…I have nothing at all…" Weiss's mother suddenly shouted at me with a burst of sheer emotion. Then she laid back in exhaustion, her shoulders slumped. She then glanced at her glass of wine on the table stand and started to reach for it.

But her outstretched fingers froze in place when I finally spoke out. "Honestly, there are plenty things you could do. But I could tell you the first step."

Weiss's mother whirled her head to me, with an almost-pleading expression. "What…? What can I do to make things better now?"

I quietly sighed inward before taking up my signature lecture pose. "First, you should start forgiving yourself. Don't hate yourself."

"Why? I am obviously not making my children's lives any better."

"But hating yourself isn't going to fix things either. And you must learn to love yourself," I pointed out calmly. "You can't learn to love others around you if you don't learn to love yourself first."

"Love…what a lovely yet cruel word," Weiss's mother whispered softly.

"Love may be cruel to some, yet it is necessary for all. This world can have all of the powers, technology and weapons to defend against the forces of darkness…" I held my right hand out to her with the palm facing up. Then I clenched it into a tight fist. "…Yet it cannot truly live on without love."

"You do have some eloquence in your words. Are you sure that you are not a scholar or something similar?" Weiss's mother rubbed her eyes as she snorted at my words.

"Nope. I just like quoting a few wise words here and there." I grinned for a moment before my face turned serious.

"…I know that your marriage hasn't been…ideal, in better words. And it was not your fault. But I would say you are not alone if you open up a little to other people you can trust around you. And you will eventually learn how to love the ones you care about again."

"…would it really work?"

"I don't know the answer to that question. No one does except you. But I know that your daughter Weiss has made great friends at Beacon because she opened up a bit. She was initially cold and well…, bratty girl back then. But soon, she became a more open-minded and friendlier person towards others because she realized that she wanted to be better than she was then. Don't get me wrong, she is still prideful and a perfectionist to the core, but she is certainly happier surrounded by friends than she was alone. Who knows? It may work for you as it did for your daughter. It would be difficult. It would be unfamiliar. But I promise it would be different than before," I declared to her solemnly.

"Weiss does love you. I don't know any child who doesn't call their mother 'mom' without any sort of affection between them. And you should understand that it hurts her if you are suffering as well. And your excessive alcohol consumption certainly isn't helping things out."

"I-I know…it is just that my daughter has grown up while I wasn't looking at her for years. And I just feel so powerless about it…"

"Yes, that is certainly true. But she is still your daughter no matter how old she gets… Er… please don't tell Weiss that I said that about her…" I scratched my head nervously.

"Haha… but no promises though," Weiss's mother lightly snorted at my expression.

"Alright, I guess that is best I can get from you now," I sighed.

A moment of comfortable silence now occupied the garden. I idly noticed that the sun has broken through the dreary clouds for a moment then. It was warm and bright.

"You know…, I never recall a time that I opened up to a stranger so easily before," Weiss' mother then mused. "But here I am, talking to you as though you were someone that I have known for years…"

"Maybe I am just a person who you could easily talk with in the first place," I said with some uncertainty in my voice. I do wonder if my Charisma Skill had anything to do with this…or was it that she felt just as lonely as Weiss as that she needed someone to talk to in the first place?

"Perhaps, would you be interesting in re-connecting with your daughter a bit more? And see the world as she sees it?" I then asked cautiously. I didn't want to rush into this, but there was an opportunity here.

"…You think she would accept that?" she asked hesitantly in return. Good. At least, she doesn't seem too apprehensive to the idea.

"I honestly do not know. But it doesn't mean it is impossible in the first place. And in my personal opinion, she probably will if you are truly honest about it," I then took a sideways glance at her glass and various bottles of alcohol. "And that means abstaining from alcohol consumption when you two are conversing."

Weiss's mother thought deeply for a moment and then nodded. "…Alright, I will see to that."

I smiled. "That is all I needed to hear."

It seems that our conversation was about to end here, but I was genuinely relieved to see the end. Don't get me wrong, but I never have talked to another person more than I felt was necessary before coming to this world. I am still not quite used to it yet. I was about to take my leave then, but another question had lingered within my mind before all of this. I bit my lip in brief hesitation before finally deciding to ask her about it.

"May I ask you a question freely?"

Weiss' mother waved her hand at me, as if giving me permission to speak. "You may."

"Why did you take the initiative to speak with your daughter today? Is there something special going on?" I asked. "Forgive me; I had the initial impression that you wouldn't be the person to take initiative to talk to one of your family members."

Weiss's mother gazed outwardly as if her mind was elsewhere. "Well, you would be right in most cases, as I am not… quite in the right state of mind. But since Weiss's birthday is coming up in a few days and I felt I should at least see her once when I was feeling a little better today. Otherwise, I probably wouldn't be…well enough to speak with her by that day."

Wait. Weiss's birthday? Weiss had her birthday coming up soon?! And she never told me about it?! Why?

"But then wouldn't there be any planned celebration by then? Surely, one's birthday is an important occasion to celebrate," I said with a confused expression.

Weiss's mother smiled sadly at my statement. "You would be right…except there is no friends and family to celebrate. Our family as you know isn't quite… the ideal family. Her father would probably dismiss such a celebration as frivolous and unnecessary at her current age…if he didn't forget it again. And Weiss is particularly not eager for birthday parties due to…certain matters in the past."

"I see…" I slightly frowned in thought. Although I too haven't celebrated my birthdays that much in my later years with all the usual flair, I still considered it as a special occasion. I found it a bit sad that Weiss didn't see birthday parties as something happy for her. But that brings me an idea…

"Could I ask you one last question?"

…

…

…

After hearing her answer to my question, I then rose from my chair and slightly bowed to her. "I will take my leave, then. It has been a pleasure speaking with you, Madam Schnee."

"Willow."

I raised my brow at her. "Pardon me?"

"My name is Willow Schnee. I grant you permission to speak with me by my first name. Madam Schnee makes me sound so old… Since I have a feeling we will be interacting more often in the future, I would like us to address each other by a first-name basis," Then she looked intently into my eyes. "And I won't take a no for an answer."

I blinked at her. I could somewhat see where Weiss got her rebellious streak from. And I could tell you that it was certainly not from her father.

"Alright, if that is what you wish. Then I will take my leave then, Willow," I smirked at her.

"Then I will see you soon, Saber," Willow gave me a soft smile in return. I nodded to her once more in acknowledgement before strolling away from her. I idly noted that the garden somehow didn't feel as depressing as before.

* * *

I soon found myself at the exit and found Klein waiting there.

As I passed by him to leave the garden, I glared at him intensely. Klein only whistled bashfully as he tried to ignore my smoldering look. I eventually settled with a heavy huff as I had more important things to think about now…

According to my otherworld knowledge, I knew that while the Schnee family obviously had problems dating back to the marriage itself, the cracks only became apparently visible during Weiss's tenth birthday. I knew that Jacques Schnee didn't sow up for her birthday party because he had some company meeting. And Willow wasn't obviously happy about that. It was during that argument that Jacques told Willow that he only married her for the company and not for love or family. While the show didn't give a lot of detail of what exactly happened that day, I had a feeling that it was an incident that one would rather forget, but couldn't.

Perhaps that is why Weiss wasn't eager for her birthday parties because of this event. Maybe she blamed herself for breaking up the family in the first place. Or that she associated her birthday as something bad to forget. Or it may be both. Whatever the reason was, it was definitely complicated than what it seemed.

I groaned in frustration. I could think about this later. Now I should go see Weiss.

But a tingling feeling itched in my back of mind as though I had forgot something very important…what was it? That tingling feeling only got stronger as I neared towards Weiss's bedroom.

When I knocked on the door, she opened it and I saw that Weiss was looking at me with a smile on her face. But somehow her sweet smile didn't quite look at all that friendly, in fact it strongly reminded me of a certain person…

"Hello, Gray. It seems that I have a few urgent things to speak with you. Would you mind coming inside?" Weiss said sweetly as if I had no choice in the matter…

…

…

…

Oh shoot… I forget that there was another Schnee I had to deal with now...

I inwardly sighed to myself. Well, it is better to get things over with sooner than later. I had brought this onto myself. I then eventually followed her inside with some resignation on my face.

I just hope I don't get a throbbing headache from this…

* * *

Long story short, I was scolded by Weiss for literally hours for how reckless, arrogant, thoughtless, and who knows what else that I was for my previous actions. The only consolation I got out of this was the fact that a seiza position was apparently a thing in Remnant. Who knew?

"Gray, what were you thinking? I thought I specifically told you to stay behind!" Weiss hissed at me for nth time as she paced around me furiously.

I then dared to look up at her. "Yes, you did. But I didn't affirm to that command. You didn't let me reply to your request as if I wanted to agree or not." Sadly, I really misjudged the women of the Schnee family.

"Gray…Are you trying to act smart around me? Perhaps I should use a command seal to make you obey every single one of my orders then…" Weiss smiled dangerously as she held up her left hand, which was giving off a whitish-blue light. I instantly sweat dropped at the intense dark aura surrounding her. Why does this situation seem so familiar?

"Now, now. A command seal should not be used in a silly case like this! And besides, I did this, so I could help you out," I protested while trying desperately to appease to her rational side. I seriously didn't want to be caught in the same situation as Archer was when Rin impulsively wasted her first command seal on such a broad order. Though I wonder between Rin and Weiss, who is actually more level-headed of the two…?

"Help me out?" Weiss's eye twitched at my statement.

I hurriedly then rephrased my answer. "Well, I thought that I could help you out in your relationship with your mother."

A pause. "And why do you care…?"

"I do care because I believe you deserve better. And I don't wish to see you sad," I said seriously.

Weiss was caught off guard from my answer, if her slightly widened eyes were an indication. I continue to speak out unhindered.

"I know how it feels to be alone. And I definitely know how it feels when family members are estranged with each other. No family can live like this. And while I cannot ignore the fact that damage has been done, I genuinely hope you could somehow reconnect with your mother to start. And I am not ignorant of the fact that you still do love your mother in these dire circumstances."

"And your mother truly expresses her wishes to talk with you. Not to lecture or tell you what she expects from you. But simply talk to you. You can decide on the topic of conversation. It doesn't have to be serious or anything of the sorts. If you want to talk about your school life, you can. If you want to talk about your friends, you can. If you even want to talk about your interests in boys, you can. You just have to talk to her. If you want privacy, I won't interfere anymore. If you want some reassurance, I will be there. Just know that I want to help you out, not just as a Servant, but someone who cares for you."

"…I see," Weiss tapped her finger on her crossed arms, but her frown has slightly lessened. "Don't get me wrong, I am still quite mad at you for not respecting my wishes, but I could see that you were trying to help me out."

I sighed as I had dodged the bullet there. "Then will you be willing to meet her up again? I was being serious about that part."

She studies me for moment before turning around. "…Fine. I suppose if my mom has no objections to this, then I will give her a chance at least." Then she turns her head towards me. "Putting that aside, how come you didn't tell me about your age? And how did you get around without being noticed like this?"

"Hmm? Oh, that? I didn't really think about it as anything serious. Age is not really a major thing to Heroic Spirits as they are summoned based on their peak in life. Time is a bit strange factor in our sense as we can be summoned from the different time periods and such," I explained. "And besides, I am not much older than you anyways. So you could still treat me as a fellow peer."

"I know, it just surprised me that you are actually older than me, and still look so young…" Weiss said with some annoyance.

I smirked. Avalon is definitely a cheat item in that regard. "Well, that is more of a special case for me as I am quite the unusual Servant. And as for the other question, what do you mean? I was wearing something similar to what the servants would wear in your mansion, right?"

Weiss pinched the bridge of her nose in exasperation. "Yes, but didn't you noticed that you were attracting a bit too much attention? I cannot seriously believe that no one gawked at you for your appearance. Why didn't you travel in spirit form instead?"

I opened my mouth, and then closed it with a thoughtful expression. "Huh, if you put it that way, I guess I could see your point there. I guess I am more used to getting around in physical form than being a ghost."

Weiss shot me a deadpan look. "Next time, please tell me of your plans before you actually execute them. I have the strangest feeling that you may overlook a few small details here and there."

I nodded. "Alright, but no promises there. There can be unexpected situations where I must response accordingly."

Weiss then sighed heavily at my response. "I guess that is the best that I can get out of you."

I hesitated for a bit before speaking out my own question to Weiss. "Speaking of one's age, why didn't you tell me that your birthday was coming up in a few days?"

Her expression darkened. "…Where did you hear that from?"

"Your mother told me about it," I answered promptly. Inwardly, I wondered if that was the wrong answer to tell her.

"Mom? Gray, I don't know what she exactly told you, but my birthday is nothing special here. Nor is something special that I wish to celebrate about. I think I am old enough to not have birthday parties anymore," Weiss said indifferently as she walked towards her window. I wasn't lying, I was quite surprised by the sheer apathy in her tone.

"But…"

"Please drop the subject, Gray. I am just…a bit tired today," Weiss requested as she made clear that she had no further interest in the topic.

I reluctantly held my words as Weiss gazed outside as snow began to fall heavily from the sky. But as I looked at her from behind, what I saw was a young, yet lonely woman. I was suddenly reminded of the show RWBY and finally understood of why she was feeling like this.

It feels wrong to have Team RWBY being separated like this. None of them probably knew how the others were doing or whether they were doing the right thing alone. And most of all, they probably missed each other a lot. And Weiss probably had it the hardest on their separation in my opinion. She has still not forgotten about her friends and I could see that the separation has taken a heavy toll on her emotional state.

So what can I do to cheer her up in the meanwhile?

Then a simple solution came up in my mind. Celebrate her birthday.

I doubt anyone would really hate having their birthday celebrated. I believe celebrating one's birthday is celebrating how someone special came into this world and living their lives. Although it wouldn't take care of the root of the problem, I was hoping it would help at least lift her spirits up, even a little bit. And even though Weiss seem indifferent to her birthday, I hardly believe that she actually feels that way deep inside. I know her too well by now.

Planning for a birthday party wasn't something easy. It would have to be a surprise birthday party, for one. I would have to ask Klein for some help here. I am sure he will be more than happy to contribute to my plans. In the rare case he doesn't cooperate… I was still having the itch to stab a certain traitor with my sword… And I had confirmed the most important date from her mother.

_Weiss's birthday was on February 12th. And I wish to make her smile that day._

* * *

**So…I don't think any of you readers were expecting this, right? I honestly didn't think much about it till the last chapter when I wondered how Weiss felt about her birthday. In my opinion, it would be impossible for her not to have any ill-feelings about it, since her tenth birthday was the day that her illusion of her family cracked apart. Jacques Schnee's overbearing influence probably didn't help things, either. And while I am not sure that Weiss had her birthday during her time at Beacon, I'm just assuming that she didn't celebrate a single birthday there. Now I feel kinda bad for Weiss about this aspect of her life. So I look forward into writing the next chapter with a little twist…hehe.**

**As for the previous comments about tracing, I do acknowledge the fact that mundane objects do seem to last indefinitely without degradation after rechecking my facts. But Shirou is a bit of anomaly in this aspect and I imagine it would difficult to be at the same level as him due to his special circumstances. And there are different circumstances between Shirou's and Gray's situations. As for noble phantasms, it is a tricky subject to work with, but you can assume that Gray won't be tracing any noble phantasms in this story. I have no set plans for anything like that and honestly, it is not the main focus of Gray's true powers.**

**A side note: If you were celebrating a certain RWBY character's birthday, who will that be and what present/gift would you give them? (Ex: If I was celebrating Blake's birthday, I will probably give her a copy of Fifty Shades of Gray. I am sure she would appreciate it.)**

**So thank you and please favorite and follow this story.**


	18. Ch 14: A Snow White's Birthday

**I do not own the RWBY or Fate universes…no matter how much I wish for it to be so. I apologize for the really late chapter, but here it is!**

* * *

**Chapter 14: A Snow White's Birthday**

* * *

The following few days were hectic as I was working on setting up Weiss's surprise birthday party. Luckily, Klein was more than happy to help me in the arrangements. Not only was he able to help me with the holes in my planning, but he was also able to get the actual arrangements underway without attracting Weiss's attention.

Klein was quite the capable butler.

Thanks to his capabilities, it was going rather smoothly so far. But there was one teensy weensy problem that even Klein himself was not able to solve for me.

_That is, what birthday present should I get for Weiss?_

I admit that I made a critical error in getting a gift for Weiss would be easy. I mean, how hard could it be to give a thoughtful gift to a young adult woman?

As it turns out, it was very hard for me.

Weiss doesn't really lack anything in material value and I figured that a gift that you could buy from anywhere isn't really going to cut it. I tried looking up for some viable ideas on my personal Scroll (which was given to me by Klein), but no such luck there either. And now I think about it, I have literally no prior experience in getting someone a birthday gift on my own.

_My own social life is pretty dull now that I think about it._

Arrrrrrrrrrrgggggggghhhh! How does getting a birthday gift for Weiss seem much harder than literally saving the world?!

"Saber? Is something wrong?" Willow spoke out in concern, snapping me out of my thoughts. We were in her garden courtyard where she had invited me for some tea. I had accepted her invitation, mostly to get my thoughts out of the gutter. Unfortunately, it seems I was still distracted in my thoughts.

Speaking of Weiss and her mother, things were actually going quite well between them. Their first talks were on the awkward side, but their later conversations gradually became less tense and guarded. It was still going to take more time, but I think things are going in the right direction for them. At the very least, they are willing to take the initiative in their conversations without me having to push them now.

And from my observations, it seems that Willow has actually taken this matter more seriously as she has kept her promise from any alcohol consumption during their conversations. I am not quite sure if she still drinks privately, but it was definitely something positive in my book. Hopefully, her alcohol problems would be mostly curtailed when we leave Atlas in the future.

That being said...

I glanced at her with tired eyes. "I have been contemplating on a very serious dilemma for days and I still haven't found a viable solution on my own. I am running out of time and I do not know what to do."

Willow brought the tea cup to her mouth to sip. "Oh? Do you mind sharing your thoughts with me? I might be able to advise you on your dilemma."

I absentmindedly stirred my own tea cup with the small spoon. "I was planning to give Weiss a surprise party for her birthday today..."

Willow raised her brow at my statement. "A surprise birthday party?"

"Yeah, Weiss looked a bit down for the past few days, so I wanted to cheer Weiss up a bit. So I thought holding a surprise birthday party would lift her spirits," I chuckled before my head slumped in a dejecting manner. "But how could I hold her birthday party when I have no idea what gift I should to give to her?"

Willow placed her cup gently onto her saucer after hearing my rhetorical question. "I'm afraid that I don't know the right answer to your question. But if I may ask, what do gifts mean to you?"

I looked at her in confusion, but I still obligated to answer. "Gifts are something you give to someone else to express how much you appreciate them."

"Then I personally would think that Weiss would appreciate anything you give to her as long as you can express how much you appreciate her as a person. The gift doesn't necessary have to anything special as long as you put some thought about the person into it," Willow said.

I carefully pondered upon her advice. So why do I care about Weiss enough that I am willing to give her a gift in the first place? Objectively speaking, we have a Master-Servant relationship and I am obliged to protect her while doing my mission in this world. But putting that aside, I guess… I do care about her as an actual person than a fictional character in the real world. Even if I wasn't a Servant, I would have supported her without question because I appreciate her as someone I care about. And I do want to protect her, so what I can do to show her that…?

Wait a minute…would that work? Well, I could probably find something else better. But in the short time I have left now, it is better than nothing.

"It looks like you have figured it out, judging from your expression." Willow observed.

"Yes, I just can't believe I have been struggling a lot with this issue," I sighed tiredly before straightening my posture. "By the way, I would like to formally extend an invitation to you for your daughter's birthday party. Will you accept?"

"…You want me to be there?"

"Of course! It is going to be a small party of just you, Klein, and myself. I personally think Weiss would be happy to see you there," I said cheerfully.

Willow hesitates for a moment. "…When and where will this party held?"

"It will be held in the private servant dining quarters at around 8 pm tonight," I answered promptly.

"But what about Weiss? Wouldn't she find out about this surprise party?" Willow asked me.

"Klein and I are being extra careful not let her know about it so far. And I found from her schedule that she will be busy attending with her father in a large business party with several other companies on that day. But she will be back by late evening," I replied.

"So you have actually been prepared for some time. But I am still worried that Weiss would not be as enthusiastic as you about this birthday party," Willow said worriedly while placing a hand on her cheek.

I scratched my cheek with my finger nervously. "Well, I have taken a few measures for that kind of scenario. But yes, whether she accepts it or not will determine how the party will go. I just hope that things will end well no matter how she feels."

Willow gave a huff of amusement. "I may not be close to my daughter as I would like to be, but I can see that you do care for her and wouldn't do anything to harm her. And I definitely know that she knows you will do everything for her own happiness."

I cast my gaze down at my untouched tea. "Thanks for the vote of confidence…it really means much to me. But…are you going to this party?"

"I promise I will be there," Willow answered resolutely, causing me to smile in relief.

At least, things are going just as planned.

* * *

Willow looked at Saber's retreating figure as he left with the excuse that he had some important task to finish. She had met many people in her life and had a decent perception of other people's characters once she has been around them for some time. As for Saber, she thought the young man to be a little strange, but well-meaning in his character. Willow felt she could trust Weiss to him if anything… happened between them, even though she didn't really know the exact reason. But it was undeniable that her relationship with Weiss wouldn't have gone differently without his intervention. She was still thankful to him for that.

She sighed to herself before she stood up from her chair. Yet she stumbled down a bit before she finally steadied herself with the table.

Willow's hands shook erratically before she regained control of them and then grimaced to herself. She hadn't told anyone about it yet, but she had cut off her alcohol consumption completely today. She already knew that her alcohol abuse wasn't doing her any favors, but it was the only thing that kept her from remembering painful memories and her depression. But all of that had changed when she saw a glimmer of hope from Weiss's smile from their last conversation. Maybe it wasn't too late for her after all…

So she decided to quit drinking today. The initial urges were… painful and the anxiety didn't help, but she had endured it nonetheless. She had made her choice and she was going to follow it through to the end without regrets.

Willow briefly glanced at the still-unopened bottle that one of the servants had placed on the table. She shook her head afterwards from the temptation before slowly taking her leave for her bedroom.

She will continue to endure. This pain is nothing compared to her past.

* * *

I stare upon the object that was wrapped in a soft crimson cloth. I wasn't sure if this was the best choice for a gift, but I think this will explain my intentions to her. I recently got a call from Klein that Weiss was returning to the mansion a litle earlier than expected, due to her father having a private meeting with some business partners. But that was fine as we had all of the party preparations done already.

I glanced at my Scroll's digital clock. It was about time to get Weiss's mother for the party now. I tucked the gift neatly under my arm as I stroll toward her bedroom to pick her up. I hummed a short cheerful tune to myself as I walked down the hallways.

As I arrived at Willow's bedroom, I proceed to knock on her door a few times and waited for a response. But there was no answer.

I slightly frowned. Was she there? I knocked on the door a few more times. No answer.

"Willow, are you there? It's Saber." I said audibly through the door.

There was _still_ no answer. Narrowing my eyes a bit, I extended my Servant senses out to search for her presence. I immediately sensed that she was there. But why isn't she answering me? Something's wrong…

I silently apologized to her before I tried to turn the doorknob. But it was locked.

No problem. I closed my eyes to concentrate a bit as I used alteration on the lock pin mechanism. A little change in its shape here, a little bit there and…

_Click…_

My eyes opened at the confirmation of my success as I tried to open the door again. Cracking the door ajar, I glanced around the room only for my eyes to immediately zero into Willow…who was lying on the floor haphazardly.

"Willow!" I cried out in alarm at her state. I swung open the door wide and rushed toward her side.

I knelt near her body. What was wrong with her? I carefully examined her without abruptly moving her body to check up on her condition. From the look of it, she wasn't looking too good to begin with.

Her breathing rate was definitely erratic and her hands were shaking quite a bit. Her nightwear seemed to be drenched in sweat and sticking to her skin closely. Her body temperature seems to be very high as I touched her burning forehead. She was also mumbling a bit under her breath as though she was under hallucinations.

…Was it possible that she was going through severe alcohol withdrawal? Her symptoms seemed to match her current condition. And frankly, I don't remember seeing her drink anything recently. Either way, this was not good. I had to do something quick. But Weiss is coming home soon and I don't want to know how she would feel seeing her mother like this…

My mind raced as I immediately took out my Scroll and called Klein's number.

When Klein finally picked up, I rapidly spoke to him. "Klein, I need you to help delay Weiss."

"What…? What do you mean?" Klein said in confusion.

"I need you to delay Weiss as long as you can for the birthday party," I reiterated calmly while trying not to cause him panic.

"Why…?

"J-Just… trust me on this, please," I explained a little nervously. "I will explain things later, but for now I want you to find a way to delay Weiss as long as you can. It is an emergency."

"…Understood. I will see what I can do. But I cannot guarantee more than a couple hours delay."

"That will be long enough," I replied before I hung up and refocused on the situation at hand. What did in world did I just get into?

* * *

Klein turned off his Scroll and gazed outside through the mansion windows.

Klein thought things were quite getting interesting for the past few days. Ever since Ms. Schnee had somehow brought Mr. Saber to the mansion, the dynamics of the mansion life have gotten a lot more chaotic. Whether Mr. Saber's arrival was a blessing or a curse to the Schnee family was yet to be seen, but Klein was personally leaning towards the former. He had served the Schnee family ever since Nicolas Schnee was the head of the household as a young lad. He was also one of the few people that had observed the drastic changes of the Schnee family when Jacques entered into the picture. He had a bad feeling about the man before the marriage, but kept his thoughts to himself as Madam Schnee seemed alright with the union. Unfortunately, his foreboding feeling was spot on.

Klein did have considerable influence as the current head butler of the Schnee family, but even he had his limits in his actual power in the family matters. He was only able to look after the Schnee children to the best of his abilities with their mother's absence, while keeping his head down from Jacques's radar. But that was only enough to keep up the image that the family was somehow holding itself together. Perhaps if he was more willing to be more risky, things might have gone differently. But the past was the past, and all he had was the future to look forward to now.

But he had personally vowed to himself to serve Miss Schnee's interests ever since that day and today was no different. He wasn't completely sure of Mr. Saber's actual goals were, but his character was undoubtedly pure. A bit strange man, but pure. He trusted Miss Schnee would be okay with him. After all, his own gut feeling has never gone wrong on him.

Delaying Miss Schnee for a couple hours will be difficult. But it is not impossible for him.

Klein then retrieved his Scroll from the inside of his vest though it was a different one. This Scroll was ebony black in color and was separately connected through his personal private network. Klein keyed in his password and started to search through his contracts. He found the first contact he was looking for and dialed it. It seems like he is going have to call upon few of his associates that he hasn't seen in years.

* * *

Weiss thought she was never happier to go back to the SDC mansion than now.

Weiss never liked going to huge business meetings or parties in the past where she had to uphold the public image of the Schnee family and the company. But when her father insisted she must come with him to expand her connections as part of her heiress duties, she had reluctantly complied. It wasn't like she had anything she really wanted to do today…

But it seems that her dislike of them only grew after she came back from Beacon. Perhaps it was because of the fake and sickening sweet smiles that people gave her only for her name. Or the callous conversations that exposed the utter ignorance and blatant selfishness when they heard about the events in Beacon. She blanched at the thought that she could have been one of them if she had never left for Beacon Academy.

It took nearly all of her effort to keep a benign smile on her face during the entire occasion as her father kept introducing her to other influential business partners and politicians whose origins were quite (as her friend Blake might put it)… questionable. He even garnered the very idea of her having a few future _meetings_ with their sons and nephews.

Thus she was more than relieved when her father had dismissed her to return home early when he had found few of his business partners with enticing business propositions. She had left the party briskly afterwards in the SDC private-owned limousine. So here she was, aimlessly gazing upon the Atlas skyline as the sun slowly disappeared beyond the cold horizon.

Weiss involuntarily shuddered from the thoughts of her future suitors that her father had introduced her to. She reminded herself to promptly shoot down every single one of their invitations whenever she got the chance. She had absolutely no interest in seeing them any time soon… or ever.

If she is ever going out with anyone, it will be on her own terms.

To be fair, she hasn't met a lot of people she would be interested in going out. After all, she had been mainly focused in her heiress duties and huntress training for most of her life. And her father certainly wouldn't let her date anyone unless there was some perceivable benefit to the company itself. If her father got his way, it will be through a loveless arranged marriage for her.

That had changed after she went to Beacon as a huntress-in-training. There was Neptune, who was quite handsome with his looks and his confidence and straightforwardness was refreshing. But Weiss thought things would have gone anywhere seriously with him. He wasn't a bad person, but his tendency to flirt openly with the opposite sex was a little irritating. At best, things would be akin to a close friendship between them than any serious romantic relationship.

Jaune, on the other hand, she didn't have much of a fair impression on him. To be fair, Weiss didn't give him much of a chance to begin with as she initially thought of him similar to her other suitors. And he was more than a little awkward in their interactions. Her other reason would be the fact that Pyrrha had a noticeable crush on Jaune and she didn't want to make things more complicated between them. So while Weiss had a better impression on Jaune now, it was by no means that things are going in a romantic direction.

And there was Gray. When they first met at the Battle of Beacon, her first impression of him was someone who was mysterious yet eye-drawing at the same time. He was a little annoying in his insistence in keeping up the mystery, but she went along with it as he seemed genuine in his help. When he finally revealed his face to her at their second meeting, Weiss, in lack of better words, was awestruck by his beauty. His youthful and elegant looks made him seem younger than Ruby herself (which was saying a lot), but his emerald green eyes and tall physique better described a shining knight from a fairy tale.

However, his personality was a bit different and varied from what he initially appeared to be. Sometimes he was formal and resolute in his words and conduct, befitting of his knight-like appearance. But at others, he is more relaxed and playful at times like a lion cub. He even felt like any normal person that you could have talked with on the street. This trait of his annoyed Weiss, yet it somehow made him seem so much more endearing to her life. She suspected that there were some things he wasn't telling her about his circumstances, but he was genuine and thoughtful in his words and character. More importantly, she trusted him and felt safe in his company.

If she didn't find anyone else in her life, Gray was someone she wouldn't mind…

Weiss's face then slowly turned bright red from her trailing final thoughts. W-what was she thinking right now!? She really blamed her exhaustion on this. Yes, her mind isn't functioning correctly as she is tired. There is no question about it.

_Not even her rapidly beating heart can deny that._

Weiss took in deep breaths as she tried to calm herself down from her thoughts. Otherwise, she wasn't sure how she was going to face Gray later.

Suddenly, her car jolted to a complete halt where Weiss whirled around in alarm. Was there trouble? She firmly tapped onto the darkened glass behind her, which slid down to reveal the driver's troubled face.

"Driver, what is going on out there? Why aren't we moving?" Weiss asked cautiously.

The driver shifted his hat around as he gazed upon the road ahead. "Sorry, Miss Schnee. It seems that there is a crowd of people blocking the road ahead…wait…the Baldy People Faction?"

"The Baldy People Faction?" Weiss asked confusingly as she looked at what the driver saw. There was a massive gathering of people blocking the road ahead of her in a demonstration of some sort. She had seen a lot of demonstrations in the past, but the most noteworthy aspect of this crowd was the fact that many of participants were in fact, bald.

The driver nodded his head. "Yes, missus. It is a small yet influential group comprised mostly of bald members and advocates on key social justice issues in the Atlas Kingdom. Although their base of operations should be in Mantle…not Atlas. Thus I have no clue of why they are protesting here right now…"

Just then, a bald man in the front with a neat black suit pulled out his megaphone and shouted into it. **"We want the Atlas council to increase affordable access to health care in Mantle! We want equal and livable wages for all people, no matter if they are human or Faunus! We want significant demilitarization of the Atlas military! These are the people's demands for real change!"**

"…But I have to admit this is the first time I have seen so many bald people at once," The driver said with both curiosity and bemusement at the situation.

"Couldn't you just take a detour around them?" Weiss asked him with some exasperation. She had no patience waiting right here for hours.

The driver slowly shook his head. "We can't. It seems like they actually blocked off the entire intersection from here. I expect that the Atlas police force or the military will be arriving soon to disperse them, but it might take an hour or two… I hate to admit it, but these guys have a real stubborn streak to them."

Weiss's mind raced for other options. "Then is it possible to get an airship to pick me up here?"

"That is a good idea. Let me check." The driver picked up his Scroll to request for any available airships in the area. Weiss repeatedly tapped her finger impatiently while crossing her arms.

…

…

…

The driver's forehead creases deepened as he talked over the Scroll. "….Oh?…Hmm…Alright, thank you for answering anyways."

"Well, is it possible?" Weiss questioned him. But judging from the driver's complicated expression, her expectations were about to be disappointed.

The driver scratched his head nervously. "…Apologizes, Miss Schnee. It seems like the Atlas Air Traffic Control Union are holding a temporary boycott because of General Ironwood's recent embargo. So no available airships besides ones for military use are being flown for today."

"Then what about our company's private airships?" Weiss asked.

"Well, somehow all of them are being used right now or docked for recent repairs. Other than your father's private airship, there are no others available right now. Even so, it is not safe to fly around here without proper air traffic control. It is probably better wait here in this case."

"What a case of bad luck…" Weiss groaned. Then she looked outside at the darkening skies and frowned to herself. She could just wait here like the driver had suggested. But it would take a couple hours and Weiss was in no mood to wait patiently…

Weiss made up her mind. "You know what? I think I will go to the mansion by foot. It isn't too far from here and I could use a bit of fresh air myself."

"But Miss Schnee, you will need an escort out here! You couldn't possibly go out there by yourself…" The driver protested vehemently.

Weiss gave him a deadpan glance as she opened her car door. "I am a huntress-in-training. I can take care of myself out there. And I promise you won't be held accountable for this by my father."

The driver reluctantly ended his protests there as Weiss exited the car without hesitation. The frigid air outside made her shiver initially before the effects of her Aura kicked in. She glanced at the night sky briefly before taking a detour route back to her mansion.

* * *

Nearby on a rooftop, a bald elderly man in a black coat observed the heiress with his detached sniper scope. Putting his scope down, he then held up his Scroll and pressed a specific contact on it.

"The target has exited the car and is heading toward the Area E. Estimated time of travel to destination, 33 minutes," the bald elderly man spoke gruffly through his scroll.

"…The delay will not be enough. Proceed with Operation Avalanche. Extend her delay to 120 minutes at all costs," the warped voice on the other side ordered.

The bald elderly man's brow furrowed a bit before confirming his orders. "…Understood."

Hanging up his scroll, the bald elderly man pressed onto his hidden earpiece. "Our target is on the move. Grumpy and Sleepy. Get into position. Bashful, Happy and Sneezy. Prepare our secret weapons. And Dopey… Please don't screw this up. We don't want to go through the trouble of bailing you out of jail like last time."

After hearing affirmations from all of his team members (plus one nervous hiccup), the bald elderly man gave a heavy exhale, producing a puff of vapor into the frigid Atlas air. Taking off his spectacles, he wiped them carefully with a red handkerchief before putting them back on.

"Klein, I hope this was really worth it dragging us out of early retirement. This doc doesn't have many days left to see that promised future. Only the Brothers know when that day will come," the bald elderly man said wistfully to himself as he gazed upon the numerous stars in the sky.

Then he walked away afterwards, disappearing into the shadows. He had a job to do now.

* * *

Trusting that Klein had everything under control, I was entirely focused on somehow healing Willow back to shape. I didn't have much time to work with.

I would be lying if I said that I wasn't panicking a little inside. I really have no idea of how and why Willow was going through all of this. But what I do know is that she is suffering now and there is the possibility she may even die from this ordeal. I can try calling a doctor for proper medical aid and advice, but she might not be able to hold on till then. But luckily I do have a viable solution in my hands.

More importantly is the fact that I can save her.

I grasped onto the gift that I was going to give to Weiss and I pulled the red cloth away. It revealed a very familiar blue and gold sheath. That's right. This was Avalon, the Everdistant Utopia. And I was going to use this on Willow.

I deftly concentrated on the sheath itself and it immediately changed into its glowing conceptual form. The glowing sheath hummed with immense power as it floated gently in my hands. And it was no less awe-inspiring than its sword counterpart.

Just then, Willow had somehow stirred a bit from her hallucinations. Her previous dull-blue eyes had momentarily gained some of their light as she focused upon at Avalon itself.

"W-What…is…t-that?" Willow managed to speak out a few delirious words.

"It is just dream. A good dream," I answered solemnly as I carried Avalon over her torso, which then entered into her body without a hitch. She was momentarily covered in a dazzling golden aura before it soon vanished afterwards. I checked on her condition again.

Willow's breathing was definitely steadier and her face relaxed in a more peaceful manner. Her barely opened eyes soon closed afterwards, leaving her to sleep deeply. I gently pressed two fingers against her neck to check for her pulse. It was beating normally. I let out a heavy sigh that I didn't know I was holding. It seems that she is going to be alright for now.

I knew that Avalon was special among many others in terms of its extraordinary healing and isolation abilities. But I wasn't 100% sure if it could work against illness or the like. But I was relieved to know that my guesses were correct on that. Just in case though, I had poured a generous amount of my prana into Avalon for the maximum healing effects.

It seems as though the worst has passed, but I decided to leave the Avalon within her for next hour or so. Even the greatest of healing Noble Phantasms need some time to do its job properly.

But for now, I will wait for her to recover and cross my fingers for the best. I just hope she wakes up in time for Weiss's birthday party…

* * *

She was dying… and drowning in despair…

Just a few hours ago, Willow was in her room feeling some anxiety and shakiness in her hands from cutting off her drinking. It wasn't something she couldn't handle herself. If it was just that, she was confident that she could recover soon afterwards.

Then the hallucinations and panic attacks came. Dark shadows started to cloud her mind. Locked and forgotten memories came back with utter vengeance. She couldn't tell what was real and what wasn't.

_"…What a beautiful daughter you have, Mister Schnee…Mom! Mom...come play with us…"_

_"…Are you sure you want to marry him?…Why did you quit?... I hate you!"_

_"…You are nothing more than a name to me… My sincere condolences for your loss…"_

_"…Where is Mom?…She is sick…When will she get better?...I don't know…"_

_"…It is your fault…Your fault…why do you even choose to live like this…?"_

**_"Wouldn't it be easier for you to die and leave everything behind?"_**

Just as when she was getting along with Weiss…was she fated not to be happy in the end?

Then a golden light pierced through the dark fog… it was nothing she had ever seen before…but she could tell it was warm and pleasant…

"W-What…is…t-that?" Willow managed to speak out weakly.

"It is just dream. A good dream," A warped yet familiar voice had answered her before the golden light seemingly shined into her. Then her consciousness was whisked away into the murky world of the unknown.

* * *

Willow Schnee finally opened her eyes up. However, she was not in her bedroom.

Yet it felt…familiar. She groaned a bit as she managed to sit up on the bed. She looked around groggily for a few moments before her eyes widened in realization of where she was.

She was at home. But it was not the Schnee mansion that had been built up years later. It was a smaller and simpler manor she once lived in. It was her childhood home.

But…it didn't exist in the present. It had been torn down years ago. Yet it was there and felt… welcoming to her presence. Tears started to form in her eyes as she started to remember distant yet fond memories.

Was this real? Or fake?

There is only one way to find out. She got off from the bed and quietly opened the door to explore the manor herself.

Step by step, Willow explored the entirety of the manor. She ran her fingers down the patched-up wallpaper that she accidentally tore at age six. She pressed a single key down of the family piano, which hummed a single note, where she had played it for ten years. She looked around the kitchen, where her mother used to create delightful treats for her when she was still alive. Finally, Willow had arrived at a certain location, which was her favorite place in the entire manor. It was her mother's own garden courtyard.

Willow stepped outside to marvel the garden up close. Her mother's garden courtyard was much simpler than hers with willow trees and a few patches of flowers here and there. But it was always filled with energy and warmth. Perhaps that was why she never felt satisfied with her personal garden courtyard as it was never truly like her mother's.

Yet the garden was strangely not overgrown or in complete disarray as she expected it to be. Since her mother passed away a long time ago, the garden courtyard became neglected and forgotten without her presence.

But judging from its current pristine appearance, it seems as though someone was taking good care of it…

"I see that you have grown so much, Willow."

Willow suddenly froze at the sound of another's voice. One that was very familiar to her. She whirled around, her eyes catching the sight of a certain person whom she hasn't seen in years.

The man appeared to be in his mid-forties and was wearing a simple black suit and crimson scarf around his neck. Along with his light blue eyes and pristine white hair and beard, Willow already knew who this man was.

She couldn't forget that face even if she tried.

_It was her father, Nicholas Schnee._

"…F-father?"

Nicholas could only give her a mischievous smile. "Is that all you have say? Well, why don't you instead give this old man a big hug?"

Without a second thought, Willow immediately rushed towards him and tightly wrapped her arms around her father as if she thought she was going to lose him.

Nicholas could only chuckle in slight surprise as he wrapped his arms around her. "Ah, I now see that you do actually miss me."

"F-father, I…" Willow managed to choke out.

Nicholas held a finger towards his mouth. "Shh…, I know what you are going to say. But you don't have to say anything for now. It has been a while since I had my little girl in my arms like this."

Willow silently agreed with him as she continued basked in her father's warmth. It has been a while for her as well. So there they were in her mother's garden, hugging each other with such raw emotions. It was a precious moment that she wanted to last forever.

But all good things must have to end somehow. Only a few minutes had passed before she reluctantly parted from him. Raw emotion swelled up within her.

"I-I'm…sorry…I-I failed you… I failed my children… I failed myself…" Willow said almost brokenly as she finally let out the raw inner feelings of her guilt. How could she face her father like this…?

His rough hand then gently brushed through Willow's hair to comfort her. Nicholas stayed silent throughout Willow's confession to him before finally speaking to her.

"My daughter, do you know why your mother and I decided to name you Willow?"

Willow sniffed as she wiped her tears off. "N-no. I just thought you like naming your descendents with W-names… Even though I had followed your advice back then…"

"Hahahahaha!" Nicholas roared out bombastically. "W-while I am sure that was just a coincidence, I named you Willow because you reminded me of a willow tree."

Willow blinked in confusion at his statement. "How?"

Nicholas backed off for a moment to walk towards one of the willow trees in the garden. His hand traced a path along the tree's trunk as he spoke again. "Willows are special trees. When the wind blows through the branches, it can emit a weeping sound. But when a strong wind particularly blows on the trunk, it will bend but never break under its pressure."

Willow gazed down depressingly. "Are you saying that I am easily bendable and depressed here?"

Nicholas glanced back at her. "No, you are missing the point here. Willow, you are a person who is strong and protective like one of these trees here."

"I was weak…I couldn't protect anyone anymore," Willow said shamefully.

"Who says you are weak? That jackass of a husband?" Nicholas snorted as fire raged in his pupils. "Love was your greatest strength, yet when your love for your husband proved to be for nothing, you felt distraught at yourself for being blind. That is why you withdrew your love from others as well. You fear that your love for them will also be for naught."

"T-that is not true…I still love them," Willow weakly protested. But inside, she knew that her father was right. She was afraid of giving her love to others. But it isn't true that she didn't love them. She just doesn't love herself.

Nicholas gazed at her directly in the eyes. "Is that so? Then why aren't you happy yourself? Can you truly say that you are satisfied the way you are living right now?"

"…"

Willow couldn't answer. There was no need as her father already knew the answer.

A period of silence passed before her father sighed.

"You know why I traveled around the world? It is not because I wanted to be wealthy or do something good for the world. I do it because it makes me happy."

"It makes you happy?" Willow asked in confusion. It was never for money or for altruism, but it made him happy?

Nicholas nodded firmly. "It is true that I initially went out on my journey for both financial and humanitarian reasons. But that doesn't mean I didn't go out to be happy. Even with all of the hardships I had suffered along the way, I was happy with my life. Because I have people I loved around me, I was happy for them. Because I was happy myself, they were happy for me as well. Happiness is what drove me to the man I was."

His fiery eyes then dimmed a bit. "Yet there is one thing I do deeply regret…it was having you marry without any love. Because of my own blindness, I couldn't see that I was taking away your own happiness in my decision. I am truly sorry for that."

"But it was my decision as it was yours," Willow protested. Her father was someone she looked up to. How could he be more flawed than she was?

"Yes, that may be, but seeing you doubt yourself in your love made me realize I was also blind to how others were happy or not in my later years. Not to mention that mongrel dare made you suffer like this…" Nicholas narrowed his eyes dangerously before sighing again. "But I was too late and weak to do anything for you due to my poor health. I know you had married the man due to my failing health, but it is undeniable you did try to love him anyways. It is a pity that I haven't found someone who could make you happy."

Then Nicholas looked at her seriously. "But that doesn't mean that you should wallow in your misery now. Willow, take hold of your grief and look around yourself. You will find that things aren't as bad as you may make them be. There is always a way out. You just have to find the change within you and make things happen. It is ultimately up to you make up for your past regrets while you still can. Do you understand?"

Willow nodded slightly. "Yes, father."

Nicholas looked at her approvingly. "Good. And please call me Dad. Father is what you call me in front of others."

"Yes, fa-Dad." Willow answered in a stronger voice.

Nicholas's eyes then softened. "The Willow I know is an intelligent and strong woman in both heart and soul. It is good to see that you haven't lost your spitfire after I passed away."

Just then, the willow trees around him rustled their leaves as the breeze started to pick up around them. Willow just now noticed that the sun was about to set beyond the horizon during their time together. Then she had a foreboding feeling of what is going to happen soon.

"You…you aren't real, are you?" Willow whispered with a tinge of realization and sadness in her voice.

"I'm not sure about that, dear. But if I wasn't, I daresay I would the closest thing to being your father," Nicholas answered as he hugged her consolingly one last time.

"I guess this is my time to go." Nicolas said sadly as he slowly parted away from her. "I don't know how I exactly got here, but nonetheless I was happy to see your face one last time."

"Go? Wait, I don't want you to leave!" Willow tried approaching her father. But the wind was now picking up, creating a strong invisible barrier between them. Willow could only watch helplessly as the image of her father became more blurred.

"It is alright. I was always in your heart all this time. Now go, enjoy your daughter's birthday for me, would you?!" Nicholas shouted to her with a small smile as he eventually faded away with the dissipating wind.

"Dad…" Willow Schnee wept softly as her surroundings turned into a blinding white.

* * *

Willow's eyes finally fluttered open. She was back in her private bedroom, back into reality. But was that just a dream? Or was it real?

Willow then felt something wet on her face as she sat up from the floor.

Tears? Was she crying because of the dream? She pondered to herself as she wiped them carefully away from her face.

_'Dad… Did I really see you or was it just a dream…?' _Willow wondered. She may never know.

"Willow! Are you alright!?"

Startled from her thoughts, she turned her head around and saw someone. It was Saber.

"Saber? May I ask what you doing here?" Willow asked bewilderingly. What was he doing here in her bedroom?

"Before that, how do you feel?" Saber asked her urgently.

"Hmm?" Willow noticed that her body now felt…lighter. It was much lighter than she ever felt in _years._ It was as though she never suffered from her alcoholism in her entire life. How was this possible…?

Then she looked at Saber in confusion. "Did you do something to me? It is not nothing unpleasant, but I feel much better than I had ever felt in years…" Her memory was a bit fuzzy during her hallucinations…

Saber gave what sounded like a relieved sigh before answering her question. "You were going through what seemed to be severe alcohol withdrawal symptoms, so I had to do something. I gave you something that would help somewhat heal you, but it seems that you have healed better than I expected. I was just checking if it had any unintended side effects…"

Severe alcohol withdrawal symptoms? Unintended side effects? That…would explain a few things about what happened to her, but what exactly did Saber give her?

"Did you give me some sort of drug?" Willow asked on a whim.

Saber widened his eyes at her question. "No! It wasn't anything like that! I just gave you a special item that would help heal your symptoms. It isn't harmful in any sense if you are asking about that."

Willow was a bit curious about the said item, but decided to let the topic go. She was just grateful to be alive and well now. "Well, I would like to thank you for doing so."

Saber waved his hand at her. "You don't have to thank me. Honestly, if you wanted to quit drinking, I would have liked you to go through your alcoholism with a professional therapist instead. Which reminds me…, please don't something so reckless again without consulting someone. I have a feeling that I will have enough trouble in my hands with Weiss without you adding into the equation."

Willow allowed herself a small smile at the young man's insistence that it was nothing. Even though, he may have unknowingly gave her the greatest gift of all.

"You can repay me back by showing up for Weiss's surprise birthday party. We actually do seem to have some time left," Saber hummed to himself as he checked his scroll.

Then he looked at her closely. "Hmm, you slept pretty well for someone of your condition… Did you dream something good?"

Willow allowed herself a sly smile. "Yes, it was a dream that I needed in a long time."

Saber glanced at her with some confusion, but eventually shook his head. "Well, if you are feeling better, then let's go now."

Willow blinked. "Go? But I am still in my nightwear…"

Saber scoffed a bit. "Does that really matter? I am sure Weiss would still appreciate you showing up even if you wore ragged clothes to her birthday party. You are still her mother, proper clothes or not…"

Then Saber paused at the sight of her sweat-drenched nightwear. He coughed a bit as he turned his head away in obvious embarrassment. "Then again…we still have some time left. You could use a change of clothing. I will be just waiting outside…"

Saber hastily made his exit from the room as Willow smirked in amusement. He is quite serious yet surprisingly innocent man. Weiss has definitely found a good one…

Speaking of Weiss…

Willow got up on her feet before reaching towards her private drawer. She slid the drawer open before retrieving a velvet-red case of some sort. She cracked it open for a moment and studied its contents. She had a reminiscing smile on her face when she closed the case afterwards.

_Well then, it was time to make her daughter happy._

* * *

Weiss was not happy. And that was the understatement of the century.

She was tired. She was hungry. She was cold. And her feet were sore from walking around. More importantly, she was more than just frustrated with how the world seemed to be against her from getting home. So yeah, she was not happy.

Just a couple hours ago, Weiss was walking at a good pace toward her destination. It is now night time and there weren't a lot of people in the way in her route. It was rather peaceful.

For a few minutes.

Then things went downhill from there.

First of all, two old drunken men somehow thought it was good time to brawl each other in the middle of the street. If that wasn't enough, the two old drunken men had friends. A lot of drunken hooligan friends. So you could imagine the chaotic mess that occurred along with the gathering crowd. Weiss couldn't find a safe route through without getting involved herself, so she had to backtrack a bit and take another detour.

It would have been fine with just that.

But the next several roads she attempted to take somehow had blockades for various reasons; from construction to… a Grimm crossing? She wasn't sure if the Atlas Council had their heads screwed on straight, but she wasn't interested to find out that Grimm crossings were a thing or not in Remnant. So it took her a while to find a road that wasn't blocked for some arbitrary reason.

Things for her would be still fine with that.

After finding an unblocked road, she was able to gain some ground for several minutes. Then she somehow found herself staring at a mass procession of people led by a bald man wearing a red fedora, crossing the intersection ahead of her. Even though she was sure that there wasn't any important occasion today to celebrate… She could have probably cross with some difficulty, but her appearance would attract a bit too much attention. So she had to wait patiently nearby till the crowd had thinned out several minutes later.

And she had thought she had seen everything…

...Till some clumsy buffoon was causing trouble by tossing rotten apples around, flirting with various women, streaking through the streets, and hiccupping randomly at the same time. And apparently he was chased by the police, which consisted of not only a few police cars but a military-grade airship? At that point, Weiss had to pinch herself several times to make sure she wasn't living in a bad dream or anything like that.

…And the strangest part about this whole situation was the fact she was going around her destination in circles. And that her travel difficulties noticeably lessened after she spent a few hours on foot.

She could have ran or scaled up the buildings with her huntress abilities, but she decided not to despite of the delays she faced. For one, the reputation of huntsmen has gone down considerably across Remnant and she didn't want to attract unwanted attention to the masses and the media. Her father would definitely not appreciate her for ruining the family reputation. Two, she had the strangest feeling that her obstacles will somehow get in front of her nonetheless if she had even tried.

All-in-all finally made it to her mansion in about two hours and thirty-eight minutes, where it should have taken her only forty minutes at best. Klein was there to greet her at the front gates with a jovial smile on his face.

"How was your trip, Miss Schnee?"

Weiss gave him a strained smile. "It… was a bit exhausting, Klein. My trip could have gone a bit more smoothly."

"Oh, you should have called me to fetch you a lift," Klein said worriedly. "It is not safe out there by yourself, Miss Schnee."

"I appreciate your concern, but somehow I have the feeling that would have been useless," Weiss said tiredly before frowning a bit. "I still don't remember the city being crazy like this before..."

Klein coughed nervously in his fist before he gestured towards the mansion. "Well, would you like me escort you to the private kitchen? I have prepared something to help ease your nerves. Not to mention, you must hungry from your ordeal."

Weiss's stomach growled just then, causing her face to get red from embarrassment. Right, she hasn't eaten anything since lunch today.

"Alright, I was getting a little tired from this nonsense I have been through." Weiss conceded as she followed Klein into the mansion.

* * *

When she had entered into the private dining room with Klein, all she expected was a relatively empty dining room with a filling yet well-balanced meal waiting for her on the table.

What she did not expect was a full-blown decorated room with balloons and streamers with a huge banquet on the table. She also did not expect Gray and her mom to be there as well.

"Surprise!" Gray shouted out with glee as various poppers burst confetti into the air.

Weiss was understandably bewildered by all this. "Wha…What? What is going on here?"

"Don't you see? We are holding a surprise birthday party for you!" Gray answered her with a smile on his face.

_A birthday party?_ Weiss looked around more closely. There were balloons and streamers of different colors decorating the place. There was a creamy cake with unlit candles in the center of the table. All of her favorite foods including sandwiches, salads and soups were there. And…was her mother carrying a photo scrap book in her hands? Rather quite fondly…

Weiss was speechless. A birthday party for her? But why?

Gray looked a little unsure at her silence. "Umm…are you okay with it? I know that you are not too thrilled about your birthday, but I think it is something worth celebrating about. So we planned this small celebration just for you.

He then took a deep breath. "However, if you aren't comfortable, that it is fine. This is your birthday, Weiss. I want you to be happy today. I am fine with giving out presents and eating cake if that is all you wish."

Weiss was conflicted inside. On one hand, she didn't a lot of good memories about her birthday and never got around celebrating it with anyone after her tenth birthday. But on the other hand, she was genuinely found the whole thing to be…kinda nice. When she was at Beacon with Team RWBY, she had entertained the idea of having her birthday celebrated with her friends there after she became…a less difficult person. But that never came to fruit when Beacon was being attacked.

But here she was with the chance to be happy with people she cared about a lot. She may be ill-tempered at times, but she was not cruel enough to say no to his efforts for her.

Besides, Weiss did admit that it would be a waste to cancel the party now. Especially with all of the food on the table…

"I…am quite alright with it. I really appreciate it, Gray," Weiss managed a small smile.

_And seeing the smiles of everyone made her felt a little less tired from her previous ordeal. _

* * *

Weiss had to admit. She had nearly forgotten how fun birthday parties can be.

The food, as always, was excellent as all of her favorites were there. Her mother looked a bit surprised at Gray's enormous appetite, but didn't comment upon it. She probably figured that was why there was so much food to begin with.

Then there came the entertainment. And…it was interesting to say.

The very first event was pinning the tail on the Grimm game, which was Gray's own idea. But Weiss didn't understand why she personally had to use her rapier to stab the tail through. Gray just commented that it was inside joke as he smirked annoyingly at her. More so, when he emphasized 'Missed!' whenever she was off the mark. Needless to say, it was apparent that she didn't have great aim while being blindfolded.

Next event was a dance off competition. Gray…was passable in his dancing if put nicely. Klein was much better in both technique and rhythm. Yet it was her mother that surprised her the most. Weiss didn't know someone could physically bend themselves that far back. Not to mention, her mother looked a lot better and lighthearted than she had seen her in a while…

Then it was a board game with dice and pieces. Weiss was thankful it wasn't too complicated to understand like the last game she played. It was relatively uneventful, except Weiss learned two new things about Gray. That he can be quite the sore loser, judging from his pouting face whenever he lost a round. Or the fact that he can get quite competitive as if his life was on the line. Somehow, Weiss thought that only made him a bit cuter in her eyes…

The last event was story-telling. Each person told interesting stories that they can think of. It also Gray's idea, but it was quite more interesting than the previous entertainment. Klein told his time at the Atlas military, which Weiss had no idea he was a former veteran. Her mother told the story about how Weiss's grandmother and grandfather met, and Weiss really thought it was quite a sweet story. But she probably didn't want to know that her grandfather was quite the ladies man as a young man.

Gray, on the other hand, had some interesting tales and ultimately was the one who told the most stories. The Wizard of Oz. Cinderella. Little Red Riding Hood. Goldilocks and the Three Bears. Beauty and the Beast. Snow White. They were fairy tales that she had never heard of before, but somehow they seemed…familiar to her for some reason. Especially the last story he told.

Finally, it was time to give out presents. Weiss admitted that she was a little more than curious of what the others had for her.

Klein was the first person to give out his gift and his yellow eyes shined as he passed a particularly thick leather-bound book to her.

Weiss politely took the book from him and read its written title. "Sieben Family Recipes?"

Klein started to explain proudly to her. "Yes, this is my complete collection of recipes that my family has accumulated for many generations. All of the Schnee family favorites are listed there along with many other dishes. I give you in hopes that you will be able to learn how to cook something delicious."

Weiss smiled at him for such a gift. This must have meant a lot to him. "Thank you, Klein. I will be sure to use this well."

Klein then leaned towards her and whispered into her ear. "It is also a good way to learn how to get a man's heart through his stomach."

Weiss blushed a bit as she glanced at Gray before turning her head away quickly. "I-is that true?"

"I guarantee it, Miss Schnee," Klein winked at her before resuming his upright posture.

Weiss looked at the book with a keener eye. Maybe she should seriously learn how to cook? How hard can it be?

_Gray had just shivered for a moment right then._

* * *

Her mother was the next person, who revealed a small red case in her hands.

"I received this when I was eighteen years old like you," Willow said briefly as she presented Weiss with her gift.

Weiss gingerly took it from her hands before cracking it open. She peered at the sight of the contents inside.

It was a simple silver bracelet with an embedded blue gem of some sort. Weiss wasn't a stranger to jewelry gifts and had seen better ones. But she wondered why her mother would give this to her specifically.

Willow glanced at the bracelet itself. "Your grandfather had received this bracelet during his travels across Remnant. He said that someone whom he helped gave it to him as a token of friendship. That friend told him that it had mystical powers that will work under certain conditions, though it may just be a rumor. However, it still had much meaning to him and he had passed it onto me when I was your age. It is yours now."

"I, I don't know what to say…" Weiss stammered in her words. What could she say after hearing that? She looked at the bracelet again with more appreciation.

Willow gave her a gentle smile. "Don't. I give you this bracelet in hopes that you can also find your path in this world and be happy yourself. Happy birthday, Weiss."

Weiss thanked her again and tried on the bracelet herself. Somehow it fitted her wrist quite perfectly…

* * *

Then it was Gray's turn and he looked a little unsure for some reason.

Gray noticed her look and smiled at her reassuringly. "You don't have to worry about me. I do have something to give you, but I…would like to show it you somewhere… privately."

Weiss looked at Klein and her mother for permission, where they both nodded for her to go. But why were they both smiling at them?

Weiss nodded at Gray, who then led her out of the private dining room to the next room over.

Now they were in the room alone, Gray turned around and sighed a bit. "First, I would to apologize for doing something without you knowing it. But I couldn't help it because I don't like seeing you sad."

Weiss almost laughed. "Why would you be apologizing to me? I really did have good time."

Gray smiled at her before continuing. "Well, I am relieved to hear that. From where I come from, the 18th birthday marks the official transition for a girl into a lady. Therefore it is a very important and special occasion for all the girls. So I admit that it was hard for me to find the right gift for you. And I still wouldn't call this gift. But it is something important to me and I would like you to hold it on for me."

Weiss blinked for a moment. Not a gift, but something to hold on for him? She wondered what in Remnant it could possibly be.

Gray took out a red cloth bundle he was holding and slowly unraveled the fabric. A luxurious gold sheath appeared, decorated with blue enamel. Weiss could immediately recognize that this wasn't something that anyone could have created.

"What is that?" Weiss said with ever-burning curiosity as she got closer to the said item.

Gray took the sheath in his hand and presented it to her. "This is the scabbard of my sword. It represents the embodiment of the utopia that a certain king sought. It is one of its kind and its name is Avalon."

"A-va-lon," Weiss repeated the name slowly as she slowly took the sheath for a closer examination. Now she had it in her hands, she immediately thought this wasn't something a normal person could have made. Not only the material was something she couldn't identify from sight, the strange engravings down the middle were of a foreign language. But…she could feel it was hiding more than what she could see with the naked eye.

Weiss looked up at Gray. "Why are you giving this to me? Does it have some special powers?"

Gray cleared his throat to explain. "Avalon is a powerful artifact that I own and is the real scabbard of the legendary sword that I wield. In the hands of the holder, it grants limited immortality."

Weiss's mind then blanked out at the last part. "W-wait…immortality? You are saying that this sheath can make anyone immortal if they possess this?"

"_Limited immortality_, but yes." Gray corrected her before continuing his explanation. "As long as the holder is near me or holds a contract with me, you will be granted potent healing which even mortal blows can be survived. But the head is still vulnerable to such blows. The other factor is that you will not physically deteriorate from aging. It is not an exaggeration that this scabbard can make it really difficult to kill the holder."

Weiss can only look at the sheath with more awe and confusion. "But why? Why are giving this me personally?"

Gray scratched the back of his head. "To be accurate, I am entrusting this sheath to you instead of as a gift. But if you are asking why, it is form of trust and insurance."

"It is a form of insurance as that you will not die easily as it is not guarantee that I will be at your side physically. It is also a form of trust because it is one of my greatest trump cards I can wield. Therefore, you could say I am giving you this as a form of trust between us as well as a way to ensure that you will be protected at all times," Gray added after seeing Weiss's questioning look.

So those were his reasons? It is just because he trusted her and wanted to protect her better? She slowly clutched the sheath closer to her as she quietly spoke out. "But didn't you say that this was your greatest trump card?"

"Yes, but that does not compare to your life in my eyes. I would rather lose the sheath instead of you if it comes down to that. Besides, I trust that you will return the scabbard to me when I need it most," Gray said confidently.

Weiss felt her heart pounding against her chest at his words. What could she possibly say to that resolution of his? Perhaps that is why she trusted him so much.

Weiss took a deep breath before holding the sheath up. "So tell me, how am I supposed to hold this around? Even I can tell this isn't something normal."

"Well, it can be turned into a conceptual form," Gray explained to her.

"Conceptual form?" Weiss asked.

"It will be much easier to show you instead," Gray answered as he gestured for the sheath.

Weiss gave the sheath back to Gray, who held it firmly in his hands. Suddenly, the blue and golden sheath became smaller and started to emit a strong golden light. Then Gray slowly inserted the scabbard in her, much to her surprise.

"Ahh…." Weiss uttered. To her, it felt as something foreign was going into her very soul itself, yet it was warm and energizing at the same time.

Then the process was finished in a few seconds, even though Weiss thought it lasted much longer than that.

"Are you okay?" Gray asked her with some concern.

"I'm fine…" Weiss waved his worries away. "But am I supposed to feel it inside me? It feels like it is in my soul itself."

"Yes, that is quite normal. I don't expect you to access it easily now, but you can pull it out at will. Remember, this will help you in life-threatening situations where I am not around you physically." Gray reminded her.

Weiss calmed down a bit as she got used the sensation of the sheath inside. It is strange, but it felt as though a piece of Gray went inside her.

"Well, I guess since that ordeal is over, I have something else for you to look at," Gray clapped his hands together.

Weiss broke out from her thoughts. "Something else?"

Gray took out his scroll and pressed it a few times. He turned it around showing a video and wordlessly gave her the scroll.

Weiss looked at Gray curiously before pressing the play button, where her eyes widened in recognition of the person in the video.

_It was her older sister, Winter._

"Greetings, Weiss. Klein has told me about your birthday party. I will like to first apologize for not being there in person due to my military duties in Mistral. And as you know, CCT communications are still down. So I decided to send Klein a recorded video in a USB drive through the express postal mail."

Winter cleared her throat for a moment before continuing. "Now that is out of way, I would like to say a few things. Weiss, I know…it has been hard on you since that day that you had live up to your father's expectations, especially when I joined the military. And I personally know how hard it is move forward by yourself."

"But Weiss, you are different. I am quite proud of you. Though your life journey is not over yet, you have taken the first steps. The first steps are always the hardest, yet it proves you can be the person you want to be. But that does not mean you cannot be happy if you strive for it. I admit that while our views may be…different in our respective positions, I sincerely hope that you can find your own happiness out of father's grasp. No matter where you go, you are one of the few I wish to see better themselves because you can."

"So Weiss, do not dwell in your past and look into your future. While you may dwell in the past, I sincerely wish that you can keep moving forward despite of that. Until next time, sister."

Then there was a small pause in her words. Then Winter's formerly stern face softened a little.

"And happy birthday, Weiss."

The video message then ended right there. Weiss wiped the tears that had formed in her eyes and looked at Gray for an explanation.

Gray didn't look at her. "I…know that you don't have a great childhood or family life. I cannot really judge how you must have felt back then. But I know that you are good person inside. I planned this birthday party mostly to cheer you up, but you probably would rather see your friends instead."

"But even though I cannot help you see your friends right now, I can at least show that you deserve to be happy. I asked Klein to get a message from your older sister because you guys are pretty close and I know you miss her a lot," Gray added.

There was a period of silence between them. Gray then turned around to go back, but Weiss immediately wrapped her arms around him. She felt Gray stiffened under her arms.

"Weiss…?" Gray spoke out in surprise.

"It is okay. I know that you are trying your best for me. And all I have to say is…thank you for being at my side." Weiss mumbled to him.

She didn't know why she was hugging him. But it felt right...

Weiss then felt Gray relaxed at her words. "I am quite happy to hear that from you. And... happy birthday, Weiss."

_Yet Weiss was the happiest person of all at that very moment._

* * *

**So that wraps up the birthday chapter for now. This is probably the longest and most complicated chapter I have ever written so far. I probably could have written this much better with more time, but it is good enough to continue with the story. The next few chapters and interludes will mark the transition to the next arc of the story, which mainly concerns Volume 4-5. So please be patient if you haven't already. And I apologize for getting this chapter out so late as my life keeps throwing ****curve balls**** at me, one after another. **

**Sigh…**

**A lot of new things were introduced in this chapter as things move forward. Nicholas Schnee appears as a cameo during Willow's dreams. Avalon is certainly plays a part in his brief appearance, but Willow's memories also play a significant role as well. Gray is also unwittingly responsible for reasons unknown for now.**

**Gray has given Avalon to Weiss as his gift and this will play a significant role later.**

**And Klein apparently has a lot of connections with people in the Atlas Kingdom. Who knew? I am not quite mapped out how this will play out later in Volume 7-8 of RWBY, but I think they will play some significant roles there. Not sure if bringing a few OCs is a good idea, but why not?**

**Please leave a constructive and polite review if you can. I do read every single one of them. And please stay healthy and safe out there.**


	19. Interlude: Salem

**As always, I don't own the Fate or RWBY universes. Please recommend this story to others if you like it.**

* * *

**Interlude: Salem**

* * *

The world of Remnant hides many secrets for such a small planet. Perhaps it is because mankind has never ventured very far from its precious Kingdoms. It may be that the dangers of Grimm greatly outweigh mankind's own curiosity of the outside. Whatever the reason, mankind somehow knew that some places were never to be ventured no matter what.

One such place would be the Land of Darkness. The Land of Darkness's exact location was unknown to the modern man as its real history was forgotten into legends and time. It was the God of Darkness's former fortress of solitude away from his brother's creations of the light. There were pools of dark liquid that contain remnants of his power, where many of the Creatures of Grimm continue to spawn from. The dark-purple barren landscape and the crimson-red skies are also eerie elements of this place.

So it is not surprising that no humans can easily survive here. It is not very welcoming to life. But it does have one permanent resident for some time.

That said resident was currently strolling through a shallow ravine of the land. The figure was a mature woman, who wore a long black robe that contrasted with her bone-white skin and bleach -white hair. Dark purple web-like veins lined her arms and parts of her face, attesting to the darkness that had corrupted her body and soul. But perhaps the most notable aspect was her eyes. The jet black sclerae and glowing crimson irises were something unnatural, even in the world of Remnant. But if one looked at them more closely, they would be mesmerized by their immense wisdom and cold rage forged over eons.

_This was Salem, the Queen of Grimm. _

_And she was brooding. Nothing good came out of Salem when she is brooding._

* * *

Salem had a slight frown on her face as she ventured outside of her castle alone. Her pace was unhurried as she contemplated upon her current situation in hand.

Her plans had veered off in unforeseen ways since she commenced her attack on Vale and Beacon Academy via Cinder. Salem knew that no plans would perfectly survive contact with the enemy, but she never expected her plans to go astray in this fashion.

When Cinder came back severely injured, Salem knew that something was amiss. As Cinder was unconscious at the time, she had to ask on her underlings of what had actually transpired that night.

_What she heard had displeased her greatly._

Cinder came back severely injured even after becoming a full Maiden, Beacon Academy had not been completely overwhelmed, and one of the eldest Grimm had been decisively vanquished in the battle. Salem was specially displeased by the fact that she didn't have Beacon Academy secured in her hands to search for the hidden Relic there. She knew very well that she would eventually lose it completely to the persistent huntsmen without the Grimm Wyvern's presence.

She supposed it was fortunate that she manage to reign in her magic power in time. Just a few moments later, she might have destroyed her own castle from her rage. But it was more than clear to everyone else that she was greatly displeased by Cinder's apparent failure.

But this rage was nothing and Salem was wise enough to know not to let her emotions get the better of her. It was a very harsh lesson she had learned long time ago.

Nonetheless, she certainly wasn't hasty to dismiss the positive points of her move. The Kingdoms were now more divided than ever since the end of Great War and huntsmen reputations had fallen worldwide. The intercontinental communications were down unintentionally (but not unwelcomed), and the Fall Maiden powers were now in her hands. But more importantly, Ozpin was dead now.

There was a slight hitch in her steps as Salem paused upon that last thought. She clenched her fists as her face turned even darker. Ozma…no, it should be Ozpin now, has recently passed away thanks to Cinder's machinations. But she knew he would come back, he _always_ did.

The question of the matter was not if, but when he would come back. If she was looking at this situation optimistically, it would be a few years before he latched onto another unfortunate soul. By then, she would have more than enough time to delve into her full plans and Ozpin would be completely helpless against her. Not that he had much of a fighting chance against her in the first place.

But if he came back before that…

Regardless, Salem would have to accelerate her plans ahead of schedule.

For the past few months, Salem had skillfully treated Cinder's injuries with her own magic. Failure or not, Cinder was the current Fall Maiden and she didn't want such a valuable card to slip past her hands now.

Salem had managed to graft a Grimm arm for Cinder's missing one with little difficulty. Cinder's left eye was also beyond repair, but Salem had…a suitable replacement for that. It was a Grimm eye that not only let her see again, but also connected its vision to Salem's. In this way, Salem would be able to see Cinder's movements and activities. She was a bit amused by the young woman's hunger for power. But it would prudent to keep a leash on Cinder as to not let her ambitions go too wild and unravel Salem's future plans.

Once Cinder finally woke up from her injuries, Salem interrogated her with the green haired girl's help as Cinder couldn't speak out clearly. After carefully hearing her side of the story, Salem had attributed Cinder's failure to two main factors.

One was the Silver-Eyed girl whom Ozpin had been trying to hide from her sight. But that was expected and acceptable in her bounds of reason. It was unknown when the girl would start using her powers, yet Salem didn't expect it to be this early. She noted to herself to try to capture the girl in the future as her plans did involve her.

The other and more concerning issue was the existence of an unknown third party.

_The wild card._

Salem did not like wild cards in the game. Ozpin was at least predictable in his movements. And this particular wild card seemed hostile to her movements and was a real threat to her plans.

However, Salem didn't know if this third element was actually part of Ozpin's circle. She suspected it was not likely or else this would have ended more unfavorably to her side, but the unknown could be anything. She had peered into Cinder's own memories with the use of her magic, but not a single clear image of the figure's face was shown to her frustration.

But she did know this mysterious figure was able to deal with Cinder's powers with ease and destroy the elder Grimm Wyvern in that battle. It was troubling that such powerful being existed as he was apparently more than a match for the elder Grimm. But what alarmed her more was his apparent resistance to Magic. As far she knew, there wasn't a single account in the past where Magic proved to be useless against something. There were defensive spells against Magic, but what Cinder described was how her Magic was negated against this mysterious figure.

Salem was definitely more powerful than Cinder herself. But she was uncertain that she could defeat the mysterious figure if she couldn't use her Magic effectively.

Thus she would need to take some drastic measures. Her plans cannot fail, no matter what. She had nothing to lose at this point. And that is why she is going to a certain place where no one else was ever permitted to enter.

* * *

After finally exiting the ravine, Salem entered to what appeared to be a shallow canyon. This place was nothing special by itself, but it did contain something _unnatural_. Salem immediately could feel the oppressive pressure emitting from the object laid in front of her.

_The aberration._

But she still walked forward, even as her own instincts screamed not to go near it.

Step by step, Salem slowly advanced forward till she was finally standing right in front of the aberration itself. It was a rather intriguing and unnatural in its form and presence.

The aberration was about the size of a small tower yet it pulsed with such immense magic levels that she never felt before. Salem didn't know how to describe it, but it was similar to a cocoon as it was storing magic for some greater, unknown purpose. At the very top of the aberration was what Salem could only call a black sun. Instead of emitting any light of its own, the black sun devoured any nearby light and stung the eyes of those who stared at it for too long.

The aberration had appeared here a few eons ago, where Salem went personally to investigate some unusual activity in the northwest of her castle. Salem was shocked, to say the very least, to find the unknown object to be filled with unseen magic reserves. But what intrigued her was the fact that the object itself exuded an aura of darkness that made the God of Darkness greatly pale in comparison.

It was dark. She felt emotions of pain, rage and despair ooze from it. Her Magic even felt amplified in its wake. And most importantly, she finally thought this aberration was her key to victory at last.

Salem paused in her thoughts as she felt a small presence nearby. Her red eyes then found a small Beowolf wandering a little too close to the aberration itself. Normally, the Grimm would not venture too close to the aberration because of her specific commands. But this particular Grimm seemed to have been born recently. Its natural instincts to negative emotions probably overpowered her control at this close proximity to the aberration.

_And that will not do._

The young Beowolf growled in surprise as it was surrounded in a purple light and gradually rose slightly into the air. Its confused growls turned into howls of pain as its body slowly deformed under the pressure of her magic power. Crunching sounds of bone and tendon can be heard audibly.

Salem brought the struggling Beowolf closer to her eye level as if she was contemplating of what to do next with it. But she had already made her decision.

_Crunch!_

A final sickening snap can be heard as the body of Beowolf collapsed into an unidentifiable black mass. The remnants of the now-dead Grimm dissipated into the air under her cold gaze. It didn't matter to her that she had just killed one of her Grimm. She had countless others like that creature under her command.

Salem then turned her attention back to the aberration, her past actions forgotten. She had tried to figure out what the aberration could do for her plans. But she was ultimately frustrated that the aberration didn't change or respond anything to her efforts, including trying to destroy it with her own magic. But that didn't stop Salem from making frequent visits in trying to decipher the secrets hidden within it. She didn't mind. She had all of the time in the world due to her immortal curse.

But just a few months ago, the sleeping object suddenly had a surge in magical power which Salem felt immediately. It wasn't immense enough to alarm any magic user beyond her territory, but it was noticeable that the air had become more saturated with magic power. Therefore her visits had become more frequent as she observed the progress of the aberration itself. Nothing much has changed over those past few months, except for the ever increasing increments of magic levels in the aberration.

But today was different. Salem somehow knew the aberration was about to do something. The current magical pressure was immense enough to cause a continental explosion if it was released all at once. Thus she observed as the aberration's magical energy increased incrementally as its eerie red-black glow hummed at an increased frequency.

Then Salem felt the magical energy rise halt suddenly at some point. She examined the object and found that its red-black glow was still there. Was it about to do something? Yet nothing had happened as she kept on waiting for a few more minutes.

Salem frowned in both disappointment and confusion at this result. She was certain that the aberration was about to do something significant, but perhaps she was expecting too much. In the end, she didn't know much about the object itself and its true purpose.

Salem then contemplated what to do next now. Maybe she could find a way to use the magical energy stored inside? This magical energy might be useful enough for her plans, especially at these unseen levels. She stretched out her pale white fingers toward it as she considered her next actions.

A red spark suddenly stung her hand from the aberration. Salem immediately felt some of _her own_ Magic drain into the object. Salem quickly withdrew her hand in alarm, but it was too late. The aberration finally _awoke_.

"What…?" Salem exclaimed before feeling a burning sensation on her arm. She glanced down briefly to find several red slash markings on her right arm. Before she could make sense what was going on…

**_Boooooooooooommmmmmmmmmm!_**

A sudden eruption of energy burst from the aberration, sending out great shock waves and intense heat outwards. Salem had to shield her eyes from the blinding light and anchor herself down with her magic. This magnitude of an explosion would have killed a normal person, but Salem was still alive thanks to her immortality.

Dark clouds now formed around the black sun of the aberration, causing purple lightning to lash out angrily like aggressive vipers. This entire ordeal lasted only for a few seconds till everything finally stayed still for a moment. Yet things weren't over yet…

The black sun above suddenly spat out a broad pillar of purple light that crashed against the ground in front of her. Salem nearly lost her balance from the immense quaking as huge dust clouds arose in the aftermath.

Salem coughed as she was greatly bewildered by the series of strange events that had just occurred in front of her. _'What just happened here…?'_

Then Salem finally noticed that she wasn't _alone_ in this place.

Salem tensed up as her hands glowed with her magic; wary of the new intruder presence in front of her. Was it an enemy or something else? How did it here without her noticing?

The dust clouds eventually dissipated to reveal a figure standing in the newly-formed crater. To say the least, Salem was both stunned and intrigued when she first laid her eyes on the unknown intruder.

It was a pale and rather petite human woman that stood in front of her. Her platinum blond hair was tied in a braid behind her and wore a rather revealing long black dress. Her entire form appeared quite elegant and fragile like a doll. Yet Salem felt this so-called woman was _more powerful_ than she was due to her oppressive presence. The woman may not be able to kill her, but Salem could tell she was formidable.

The eyes of the woman finally opened, revealing cold golden irises that gazed right at her own vigilant red ones. Her expressionless face showed no visible reaction to Salem's own presence.

_For the first time in eons, Salem felt uneasy. _

Then pale woman finally spoke out to her with indifference. **"...I have come as bidden by the summons. You are the one they call a 'Master'?"**

* * *

Salem was puzzled at the woman's initial introduction, but she didn't show it on her face. Summons? Master? Who was this woman? Why was she here?

But eons of wisdom prevented Salem from faltering at the woman's question. Her mind raced as she deftly connected the past events that had just occurred and her current information that she just gained from this woman's introduction.

_Aberration. Spark. Loss of personal magical reserves. Markings on arm. Surge of power. Pillar of light. Unidentified woman in crater. Summoning. Master._

Salem's eyes narrowed as she pondered. Too many questions are still unanswered. Many of which she wanted to ask right now.

But… she was wise enough to come up with a logical conclusion. Salem now noticed that there was an invisible bond between her and the pale woman. She could feel some of the energy flowing to the woman itself. So…does that mean that she now controls this woman as a summon? Summoning magic back then wasn't unheard of, but they were very rare and often weren't strong as the being currently in front of her. Nor did she ever heard of a summon to be remarkably similar to a human in appearance.

But…perhaps she could take advantage of this…

Salem gestured the pale woman's gaze to the markings on her arm. She suspected these were some kind of proof of their 'contract'. "Would these red markings on my arm prove I'm your Master?"

The pale woman peered at her arm briefly before nodding to Salem; confirming her suspicions. "It appears that you wield great power within you, but what is your name?"

A name. It appears the pale woman didn't know who she was, adding to her theory of a summoning contract. "…You may call me Salem."

The pale woman's indifferent face didn't change at the mention of her name. "Then our contract is sealed. As for myself, you can call me…Alter. Now then, what is that you seek, Master?"

"…You wish to know what I seek?" Salem asked while pondering over her question. There were many ways to answer that question, but was there really a simple answer for her?

Salem then recalled her past memories…

_Locked away in the tower by her cruel father. Ozma's untimely death. Her curse of immortality by the Gods. Left alone as first wave of humanity is wiped out. Her four daughters dead with her husband's betrayal._

_Surviving yet not living for eons. Alone._

Dismissing her thoughts, Salem finally answered with absolute certainty in her voice. "I seek to destroy those who dare impede my path for absolute power in this world."

Salem didn't want to feel powerless as she did in her early life. No one will take things away from her anymore. Not even the Gods themselves. So she will dominate and crush everything in her path with no mercy to obtain that power. That is her true desire.

There was brief moment of silence between them before Alter finally closed her eyes. "Very well, Master."

Then darkness suddenly enveloped Alter. Salem's eyes narrowed warily at this situation, but the darkness eventually unraveled again from the pale woman. What was then revealed was not a fragile-looking doll, but an unmatched warrior of power.

Alter was now dressed in a dark purple battle dress with heavy black armor on top. Over her eyes was a black metal mask with jagged ends and glowing red lines on it. But it was the long sword that she wielded that caused Salem to pause at its sight.

Salem couldn't move her eyes away from the sword. The black sword with red glowing markings seemingly drank in the light around it. It would be wrong to say this sword contained pure darkness. No… it was a sword that once had great light, but was tainted with darkness and evil…

_It was corrupted evil, just like her…_

More importantly, she felt great power from the sword. She never once saw the relics that Ozma had once told her about. But if someone told her that this sword was a relic, she would believe their words.

_If she had this sword in her hands, then…her victory may be ensured._

Alter promptly planted the sword into the ground; her hands resting on its pommel. Then she spoke to Salem in the same aloof manner. "I will make my sword as your own to sow despair upon your enemies, Master. Command me as you will. "

Salem didn't respond verbally after hearing Alter's vow to her. But her increasingly eerie smile was very telling of her inner feelings.

_Perhaps to deal with a wild card was to have another one in her hands._

* * *

Y̶̳̝̰̺̓́͊͗͝Ẅ̶̨͙͎͓̝̟̩̻͓̇̄̆̀͑̀͋̔̚͜Ǫ̸̟̻̯̜̪͓̱̀͒̀̐͜Y̴̯̞̑̀̓̿̐͝ͅW̷̧͙͖̬̤̞̹̫̎͋̄͝H̶̛̯͔͎̻̞͔̪̜̆͋̽̆̇́Ẅ̷̜͓̔̍̊́Y̵̢̨̬̲̐̄͗̀͗̾͂̓͘̚ͅD̶̢̩͙̱̰͔̟̓̓̉͛̊͘͝I̷̜͊̈́Ẇ̶̢͔̩̳͜A̴̡̢̧̘͈̭̫̋̾͛͐͜Č̶͉̘̬͈̮̌̇̚̚Ā̶̛̘̜͉̱͌̅̍͋̎N̷̡͉̺͕͇̳͒̽̍̀̍̇͜ͅͅP̴̺͍̞͛̅ͅR̸̻̠̮̲͖͉͔̞̩̍͂́̎ͅB̵̨̢̯̯̮̮̈́̓F̷̤̩͓̳̐̍̾͛̄Ñ̴̹̯̗̩̩̺̃̓̚͝Y̶̢̥̩͈̪̞͙̬̫̐̋͒̾̿͌̑̈Ļ̵̡̜̖̣͙̬̲͂̿̀̀͝B̸̟̟͕̻̝̽̐͐̆̈́͘͜Ä̸̡̩̮̞̬́͆͝ͅͅW̸̢̗͔̫͈̦̫̻̓̂̒Ą̴̫̺̱͉̥̭̰̅̒͐́̀̑͋͘T̸̰̋̃͂͊̅̉͘͠C̴̬̫̲̥̱̰̬̲̈́Į̵̱̦̤̮͈͔͌̀̑̄ͅW̴̡͚̼̥̞̣̺̘̹͉͗͛́͛̅̎Ä̸͉̖́̍̓͐̊̎̊̒̕P̸͙̬̖̗͖͓̹͔̟̾̐͑̓͊͌͜͝D̸̡̙̬͇̀̈́̑̆͘Ť̷͎̰̦̬̯̟̒̃̔͗̕Ę̸̧͎̠̙̒T̶̡̘̟̻̩̤̂̔̇̈́T̴̢͕͉̮̱̣̣̹͇͆̊͊̈͊̍͗͝B̶͚̦̰̱̗̍̓͋̈́̈́͌͜T̷̼̜͌̊̌̋̕S̷̢̧̜͓̳̐͆̽̀Y̶͇̤̯͔̦̪̥͑̄̌̾B̵̛̞͈̆̆͆͗̂T̷͔͊̐͊̋͂̋͠N̴̛̲̒̽̃̉̊͛͊͝͝À̵̛̭̼͖̀̒̊̈́͂͊̈́Y̴̛̪̍̏̇̑̑̈́̒̚B̵̗̻̫̅̈́̓̾̈́̈́͝ͅW̶͕̾͂̈́͘S̷̩̙͖͖͔̈́͛̓̐̏̆͂͂͠Ǔ̸̟̮̤̼̳̝̌̐̈́́̓̓͋͗͘S̶͉͈̝̪̳̻̝̲̻̗̍̇͂̇͌̿̅̈́̋̌Y̸̡̩̯̰̽̎̐̄́̚ͅW̵̭̌̈́̉̊͠͠B̵̨͖̰̬̠̓̔̌̄̾̈́̋͐̔͘ͅǪ̷̛̛̛͓̞̪͓̍͑̊̋Ț̵̟̯͈̥͕̲̀M̷̡̺̟̞̮͕͔̈̑A̵̧̗̯͕̩̫̯̦̮̯̍̅̈͐̈́͝T̷͉͓̥̜̝̊̽̓͝W̶̹͇͚̦̮̩͕̹̩͒̊́͘͜Ỳ̸̦̖͙͙̠͝͝M̵̟͙͍̦̭̈́͘͝M̴͎̗͙̍̍W̶̥̦̄͜W̸͓̯̘͙̙̿͛̓̓͊̾̋̚̚ͅH̶͉͓͔͓͔̜̏ͅÝ̴̡͇̗̦͕̮͚́̊̄͘À̴̻̘̒̐̿͛͘͜W̵̡̱̫̠͇̰̫̲̭̒̋͌́̋̉̆̈̕͜A̸̪̘̪̳̯͖̠̰̲̐̂́͌̀̉̕ͅÎ̷̡̘̪̙̰̦͉ͅY̷͕̯̿̔͘͘D̵̢̜͔̜̍̏̉̄̀Į̴̛͈̠͕͎͙̰̩̽̆̇̀̀̾̿͜͠Š̸̝͈̖̙̍̀M̵̨̡̧̰̟͈͈̤̰̈́̕͘͜͝Ö̷̢̢͇͓͎̗̦̟́̔̀́̕͝F̷̝̺̪̍N̶̢͖̘̝̥̟̝̝͎̰̈̄́̑P̶͕͖̠̐I̵̠͈̖͇̎́M̷͕̬̮̱̗̜͛̋͘Ẃ̴̺̖̩͎Ṯ̷̢͗̈́̍͗̐̕ͅŴ̷̨̨̖̱̩̮̼͊̾̅̀̕Ȧ̶̪͐͂̈́̓̓À̴̢̧̧T̸̡͉̔͂͌͆͝A̶̧̺͉̐̆͆I̴̙͚̱̍̂̂͒W̴̛̠̠̗̬͍̬̤̟͕͆́͛̄̀̊̅͝S̸̡̮̫̮͕̩͔͍̃̏̈́̄̑̔̿Y̸̡͚̲͚͒͆̅͗͋͆̇̉͠I̴̧͇͎͍̥͈̩̲̥̳͗̾S̶̡̘̙̲̱̭̲̭̳̯̅̌Ḭ̶̮̖͋͐́͂̃Ḏ̴̝̣̯̙̹͉͖͐͜͝͝…̸̹͍̳̎͂͗͝ͅ.̸̟͍̥̦͉̣̙͂̈͗̾

Somewhere and sometime in the indefinite and immeasurable beyond…

It was a place where mankind has not seen or reached yet.

But **_it_** lives here.

**_Its_** eyes opened. Those eyes stare into the **_void_** beyond this place. **_It_** can be perceived as intelligent yet **_it_** was something more.

Time has passed yet has not at the same time. Time and space are a little irrelevant here.

Then _**its **_eyes closed again as a decision has been made already.

Several swirls of light formed around _**it**._ Those lights then shot towards the **_void_**. They entered and bypassed the **_void_**.

The **_void_** did not notice them. **_It _**was fortunate. The **_void_** did not stare back at **_it_**.

**_It_** spoke.

**_ "You are running out of time, my child. The pieces that the Creator had set are now moving. I have done everything that I can do now. It is up to you to save the worlds…"_**

**_ It _**then waited.

_The fate of Remnant has once again shifted..._

* * *

**So here is the Salem interlude as we finally enter into the last chapters of this arc. I thought Salem to be mysterious character in the RWBY universe because her motivations aren't as clear-cut despite what the official canon says. For one, she is obviously after the power of the Maidens and Relics themselves, but it is not so clear what she is going to do with them. Maybe she wants to create a weapon against the Gods themselves? Who knows?**

**Salem has indeed summoned a Servant (although unintentionally). And yes, there will be quite a few Servants coming into the RWBY universe, though not all will be summoned normally... There will be a few twists as we deal with rather unique situations for the future Servants. I honestly cannot wait for it. **

_**And a mysterious being is watching everything...**_

**I was also quite pleasantly surprised by the relatively positive reviews from the last chapter. I did spend a lot of time and effort on that particular chapter, but I wasn't sure if it was good enough to read. **

**So thank you...**

**A side note: I have been working on another fanfic as well, but it won't be released yet till I get a few chapters down completely. Specific details about it will be released in next chapter or so.**

**If you like my work, then please favorite and follow this story and the author.**


	20. Ch 15: Our Dreams

**I do not own Fate or RWBY universes. Here is the next chapter.**

* * *

**Chapter Fifteen: Our Dreams**

* * *

_Okay…where in the world was she? Weiss didn't think this was her bedroom anymore._

Weiss had found herself in the midst of a green field. It was daybreak; the sun had just begun coloring the skies in oranges and yellows. There was the distinct scent of fresh grass and earth in the air. Cool breeze blew and gently brushed against her snow-white bangs.

Yet she knew this wasn't real despite of the realistic sensations. It was a dream. Yet it was a dream that did not belong to her. It was a memory of someone else.

_But whose?_

Still in her white nightgown, Weiss looked around the place before she saw something distinctive on top of a small hill. Yet the moment her eyes laid upon the object, she couldn't tear her gaze from it.

How could she? It was a dazzling long sword of gold and blue. It had an ornamental design as if it was made for a symbol of authority rather than as a proper weapon for battle. There were unknown small inscriptions can be faintly seen on its steel blade. The sword itself was planted firmly into a stone as if it was waiting for someone worthy to pull it out as its true wielder. And Weiss somehow knew what it was despite seeing it for the first time.

_Its name was Caliburn: Golden Sword of the Victorious. The sword of selection._

As if she was in a half-trance, Weiss found herself walking steadily up the hill, towards the sword itself. Before she knew it, Weiss was standing right in front of it; her small hand reaching forward to grasp its hilt…

But she hesitated, just as her fingers were about to touch _it_…

_She was not the one. This was meant for someone else…_

"Oya, are you not going to do it?"

Startled from a stranger's voice, Weiss snapped out of her hypnotic state and whirled around only to see a man. The man wore a clean white robe and was cradling a strange-looking staff in his left hand. However, she wasn't able to see his face clearly due to his rainbow-white bangs covering his eyes. However, the man felt a little strange as if he wasn't…entirely human.

Then Weiss remembered what she was doing before.

"Oh…I'm sorry," Weiss apologized to the strange hooded man. She really didn't know what came over her at that moment. Her previous actions were quite uncharacteristically impulsive…

But the hooded man didn't respond to her words. He only turned his head to his left side, as if he was speaking to someone else behind him. Her ice-blue eyes then gazed at the same direction of where the hooded man was looking at.

_Then Gray appeared._

No…this was not Gray she knew.

This person had a different appearance. Much shorter in height and a golden hair bun tied with a blue ribbon. This person didn't have the usual blue-silver armor attire as Gray and instead wore a plain tunic and skirt. _She_ was definitely a female, though a bit boyish in demeanor. But her green eyes and charismatic aura was unmistakably the same as his.

_Who was this woman? Why does she remind me of Gray?_

_…_

_…_

_…_

_And…was it wrong to say that she is beautiful?_

The young woman continued her trek up the hill as Weiss made way for her without a second thought. Weiss didn't know whether it was out of respect or awe. It was probably both. The young woman only stopped her steps right before the sword in the stone.

The hooded man spoke once again. "You should consider it once more before picking it up."

Weiss looked at the hooded man with some confusion. What was there to consider? It is just a sword, isn't it?

The young woman replied with stoic and neutral voice in a manner eerily similar to Gray. "I do know that, Merlin."

The hooded man named Merlin kept his smile, even when Weiss caught something indecipherable in his voice. "Then you should know that once you pull that sword, you will no longer be human. Not only that, you will be hated by all sorts of humans and a cruel fate awaits you as the King of Britain. If you choose not to pull the sword, you can live a happy life as a young woman and your death won't be painful, Artoria."

_'This woman is going to be a king? Wait, what does he mean that she would no longer be human?' _Weiss stared at the young woman named Artoria standing before the sword with unease. What kind of responsibility and fate await for this woman younger than her?

Her question was answered with an image of a torn battlefield that momentarily disrupts the dream world around her for a split second. But it was more than enough to reveal the young woman's fate. It was a smoky and red dusk. Countless broken weapons pierced the ground as bloody corpses piled the battlefield. The stench of rusty blood and cry of hungry ravens invaded her senses. And top of that hill was the Artoria. Yet she was now in blood-drenched armor, half-kneeling with a broken spear in her hand. She was all alone and dying as her kingdom was destroyed.

_That is her fate._

Weiss gasped as she collapsed onto her knees as the vision seared into her mind. Her fingers tightly curled against the grass. _What was that? Was…that her future? Is that how she ends if she pulls that sword?_

With cold sweat beading her forehead, Weiss managed to pace her breathing. She had to warn this Artoria of her dreadful future. No one should live a life like that.

"Hey! You should not pull out that sword! Nothing good will happen to you if you do so!" Weiss shouted out desperately. Yet her words remained unheard by the young woman. For this was a past memory. It was an inevitable turning point in history and cannot be changed.

"Perhaps. But…will Britain be saved without me?" Artoria asked without responding to Weiss.

Merlin didn't say anything besides keeping an infuriating smile on his face. Weiss could only watch helplessly as she knew that she couldn't prevent this event. Why would this young woman named Artoria do this? For what reason is it worth suffering for in the end?

_Why?_

It was Artoria's next words that answered her unspoken question.

"If I can make people happy with it, then I am sure it's not a wrong decision," Artoria declared.

It wasn't an exaggeration that Weiss was speechless beyond disbelief. Was that what Artoria truly wanted in her heart? If it was someone else, then Weiss would have chalked it to some empty idealistic words. Yet…she could sense Artoria was seriously committed to this decision. It did not matter to Artoria if her convictions to her ideals led to her own end. It was worth it in her eyes…

_To save her people. To save Britain. To finally lead them out of the Dark Ages into a new era for mankind._

In a way…Artoria was like someone who may be found in ancient legends and fairy tales she once read as a child. It was like…

_One of those legendary heroes._

Artoria then stepped forward and her fingers wrapped around the hilt; grasping it firmly in her hands. She then exerted her strength as the sword was slowly pulled from the stone, inch by inch.

_Shhhhhiiiiiii-cchhhhhhuuunnnnnnggg!_

Finally, the sword fully slid out with a resounding ring to its full glory.

Blinding golden sunlight suddenly bathed upon the young woman herself, who slowly raised the sword high into the air in silent triumph. Weiss couldn't help but stare at Artoria in awe (and sadness) as the new King of Britain was now chosen by the sword.

_Thus the young woman named Artoria Pendragon became King Arthur._

_And the legend of the King of Knights has begun._

* * *

"Ugh…"

Her ice-blue eyes fluttered open.

Weiss didn't know when she got back. But she was now back in her bedroom and it was still dark outside.

Weiss then sat up in a slight daze as she tried to comprehend of what she had just dreamt. It was clear to her that 'dream' was too real. It was a memory of one's past. But it wasn't hers.

The only plausible explanation would be that Gray was somehow responsible for that vision. But Weiss didn't see him anywhere in the dream…

Countless questions burned within her mind. Yet it came back to same two questions.

_Who was Artoria? And how does this dream relate to you, Gray_?

* * *

_The ominous tension in the air was palpable._

I, Gray Pendragon, was facing my adversary with my invisible sword out in front. We were both silent, not moving a single inch from our stances for several minutes. One wrong movement could spell a swift end to either one of us.

…

…

…

Then I shifted my back foot slightly.

_CCChhhiiiiiiiiinnnnng!_

Our first exchange results in hot sparks flying into the air as metal collided with wind. My opponent had dashed towards me with a lightning-fast pierce, yet I blocked it effortlessly with my sword.

_Shink! Tang! Ching!_

My foe quickly disengages the blade lock, knowing that I have the overwhelming advantage when it comes to raw power output. She then immediately delivers a quick succession of strikes; all aimed at the weak points in my armor. Instantly reacting, I twisted my arms around and successfully parried every single attack with my sword.

_Shink! Tung! Chung! Shank! Ting! Tang! Ching! Shing! Tang! Ching! Chank! Chink! Tink! Shung! Chang! Shink! Ching!_

We exchanged dozens of intense blows with each other in a matter of seconds. But it was very clear to both of us that I held a solid edge in this bout. My opponent knew that she had to change the situation soon in her favor.

She immediately retreats several meters back and a glowing yellow Glyph resembling an accelerating clock instantly appears under her feet. The very image of her white figure then blurs.

My instincts blare out in warning. My green eyes flicked towards my left rear, only to see the deadly silver glint of the rapier. Undeterred, my arms responded even faster to the attack.

_Shhhhhiiiiiiinnnnngggg!_

Adopting an upper shoulder guard stance against the thrust, the deadly rapier was halted by the steady invisible blade. I then shoved the opposing blade back by leveraging both hands and closed in with a flurry of powerful swings.

_Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!_

My lithe opponent narrowly avoided my attacks with graceful back flips before slamming her tip of sword down on the ground; conjuring a widespread arc of ice spikes toward me.

Unfazed, I deftly circled around the incoming ice attack before rushing towards my opponent with a decisive horizontal sword cut.

_Cllllllaaaaaaannngggg!_

However, my attack was immediately blocked by a large white broadsword held by a giant white knight summon. Its broadsword rose and came crashing down at me again, but I easily weaved around its blow and pierced the knight's chest deeply; causing it to crumble into numerous shards.

Then I abruptly rolled forward, where a blast of fire scorched my previous position. The impact of the fire blast on the icy floor caused the area to be covered in a dense mist; limiting my area of sight.

But that didn't matter to me. I stayed calm as I quietly paced my breath and tried to judge where my adversary was. It stayed silent for several seconds as I glanced around carefully.

…

…

…

…

…

Then I felt a slight disturbance in the air toward my eleven o'clock direction. I reflexively tilt my head to my right side slightly.

_Whish! Whish! Whish!_

A few particularly sharp icicles flew right past where my head was and slightly brushed against my side bangs. Well, she is certainly not giving me any room to…

_SSSlllaaaannnnggggg!_

I abruptly flourished my blade around to block a sword thrust aimed at my lower back. Without thinking, I instantly delivered a solid back kick, causing my opponent to cry out in surprise as she was flung across the room.

Okay, time to kick things up a notch…

Without delay, I partially activated Invisible Air out, releasing gales of wind that cleared the dense mist around me. Now I have regained my vision now. I glanced towards the place where my opponent should be lying.

But to my surprise, she wasn't there…

Then my eyes widened. I glanced up only to see numerous ice Glyphs in the air and all of them were aimed towards me. My opponent was standing in the air with the support of her Glyph; glaring down at me with utter seriousness in her gaze.

Oh.

Then she swung down her sword; releasing a storm of deadly icicles upon me. If it were some lesser opponent, they would certainly be taking some serious damage, if not finished in battle. But I had other plans in mind.

I pointed my sword outwards and charged some mana into the swirling column of wind. I then shouted out the name of my Noble Phantasm.

**"Strike Air!"**

A powerful wind gust burst forth to intercept with incoming projectiles. The flying icicles instantly faltered, and then were shattered into pieces with the might of Invisible Air (though intentionally weakened). In some other scenario, this would have been the end for my opponent as they would be blown away as well. But my opponent was Weiss Schnee. And she wasn't going to give up so easily.

Just a split of a second after her release of the attack, the Glyph under Weiss' feet angled towards my blast of air and turned black. Then a white blur shot right towards me.

Normally, no one would be crazy enough to do what she did unless they had something to counter my Noble Phantasm specifically. But Weiss had some ideas up her sleeve.

It was too quick to be comprehended by a normal person. But what I can tell with my keen perception was that Weiss created a five layered Glyphs in front of her, strengthened by hard-light Dust (very expensive stuff by the way). This was probably inspired from my previous remark of the Archer's greatest defense, Rho Aias. It wasn't even close to the strength of the Noble Phantasm projection, but it is certainly a formidable defense for Weiss.

But Weiss didn't stop it right there. A counter-spinning wind current appeared around her figure and created a slipstream in my Invisible Air. Together with her defensive measures, Weiss was able cover the distance between us without getting seriously hurt.

Pretty impressive.

But this wasn't going to be enough against me. One flaw of her plan was the fact that she was too predictable in her final strike. But she must have known that, so what is she exactly planning to do next…? I would be lying if I said that I didn't look forward to her next moves.

With that thought in mind, I swung my sword against her Glyph defenses, causing them to crack visibly under my blow. But they held enough to render Weiss unharmed, but her momentum in this fight was lost now…

"-?!"

I instinctually blitzed backwards to avoid the explosive Dust Glyphs that appeared underneath my previous position. Yet they soon disappeared prematurely…

Then the Arma Gigas suddenly rose in front of me with its sword held over its head. I hastily adopted an upper guard stance to brace against the expected downward blow.

But it didn't swing the sword down.

It instead _shattered into pieces._

In the split moment after that, Weiss and I found ourselves pointing our swords at each other's necks. I found myself with the cold blade tip of Myrtenaster tickling my throat. On the other hand, Weiss had slightly peered down to see a blade near her carotid artery. It was a draw.

_So, how did this situation exactly happen?_

Well, it seems that the Armas Gigas's appearance was meant as a distraction, not as a means of attack. Weiss was hidden behind in it out of my sight and she attacked the very moment that it was dismissed on her command. Judging from her sudden increase of speed, she must have used another Time Dilation Glyph in her preparations. Adding to the factor that I had a slight opening in my guard, she had the prime opportunity to land a precise blow on me.

So why didn't I lose then?

Well, I knew that something was amiss at the moment that the explosive Dust Glyphs didn't activate (though I had little clue of what Weiss was exactly planning). So when the Armas Gigas appeared, I kept up my guard for the real attack by keeping one of my hands free to defend myself. If it wasn't a trick, I was confident in my strength that I could defend against the strike with one hand. I admit I was slightly surprised by her attack method, but I had instantly traced a nameless sword in my free hand to counterattack. Thus I was able to make this into a draw.

_I admit I could have feint my loss to Weiss this time, but I was a bit of a sore loser…_

* * *

Weiss groaned at the sight of my traced blade. "I can't believe that you were able to get away from this in a draw. Again."

"Well, I don't let my guard down easily, even when I am going easy on you," I replied amusingly as I dispelled my swords. I could have ended this match more easily if I relied on my Magic Resistance against her Dust attacks and didn't hold back so much on my actual strength and abilities. But this spar was more to test Weiss's combat abilities, not to beat her down completely.

Her tactics weren't half-bad, objectively speaking. She knew that I was much stronger than her, so she tried to use deceptive attacks to catch me off guard. It would have been a bit better that she had resorted to more long-range attacks against a melee fighter, but it wouldn't have done much against me anyways. If I didn't know Weiss as well as I did, I would have probably lost if I had let down my guard.

"But you did well in pushing me this far. I don't think there would be many who could defeat you easily now in this world." I observed appraisingly. Weiss could probably defeat her older sister with 70% certainty based on my knowledge. The only thing that Weiss lacks is life-death battle experiences and I am doing the best I can to train her for that.

Weiss slightly blushed. "T-thank you, Gray. I couldn't have gone this far without you."

I nodded at her apparent appreciation. "It is my pleasure, Weiss. By the way, how is the customized armor working out?"

Weiss wasn't just wearing her usual combat attire as she had been fitted with several specialized armor pieces as well. I had opted for a simple cuirass, vambraces, and greaves as the main pieces of armor for the maximum freedom of movement while still giving some decent protection.

"It is better than I expected. Not only is it light and flexible enough to not hinder my movements, it is somehow strong enough to absorb the shock from your blows." Weiss said wondrously as she examined her new attire.

"Well, I expect that after I modified it a bit," I said with some pride in my work.

What I didn't tell Weiss was that I had to go through hundreds of similar pieces before I could create her armor to my satisfaction. The armor that she was wearing was one of the final products of experimentation to optimize her abilities to the very limits of the armor itself.

The finished product was made from a material similar to the ones making up highest quality bullet resistant armor. Metal was simply too heavy for the armor I was imagining and had its own limitations. Thus the armor clasps were the only things that were made from metal.

This special material was strong enough to not tear under the metal blades and can block and absorb standard rifle bullets. And it was still light and flexible to not impede Weiss's movements that were necessary for her fighting style. It is certainly not enough to block artillery gun fire, but it was better than any other armor in the market. In fact, I was a bit suspicious about its origins as this type of material seems to be way too good to be sold publicly. Klein (who was the one who provided the material by my request) assured me however that it came from a reputable scientist who had some extra time on his hands. I guess I have to trust his word for it though I am interested in meeting the person himself.

The material was already good, but I used a bit transmutation magecraft to make it even better. I improved mostly upon its resistance and shock absorption elements, but I took note of its aerodynamics and flexibility as well.

I also made it comfortable and fashionable as well. The armor pieces were metallic platinum in color, giving off an illusion of being made of actual metal. It was made easy to put on and take off on the fly, and can be worn over her usual clothing. I found it unfortunate that I didn't know any runes or special spells to amplify her other abilities, until I eyed a piece of Dust lying around in my temporary workshop.

That gave me the idea of using Dust-infused fabric. Weiss was evidently skilled enough in her Dust manipulation to use this method and I don't see any reason not to do it. In this particular armor, I chose to weave in ice and wind Dust threads into her vambraces and greaves due to her familiarity with these. I also used some hard-light Dust in the cuirass to act like an extra layer of protection. However, this process was the most difficult part for me and I had to ask for guidance from Weiss and Klein on the usage of Dust threads.

Overall, this so-called armor may be the most advanced personal light armor in Remnant in terms of its capabilities. And I also made several backups, all with different designs for cosmetic and combat purposes. So yes, I was very concerned about her personal protection measures when I was modifying her armor. That is one of the reasons why I gave Avalon to her in the first place.

* * *

Breaking off from my musing, I then noticed Weiss looking at me in a rather strange manner.

"Is there something wrong, Weiss?" I asked curiously. What could be bothering her now?

"Ah…, I had something to ask you," Weiss finally replied, snapping from her gaze.

"Okay…what is it?" I said with my brow raised.

Weiss then took a deep breath. "Gray… do you know someone by the name of Artoria?"

My eyes widened at the mention of the name. "Where did you hear that name?"

"It may sound a bit strange, but I dreamt of it." Weiss answered albeit unsurely.

A dream? I narrowed my eyes with a hunch. "Could you please describe the dream to me?"

My suspicions were later found correct after Weiss had retold her dream in detail to me. "Oh, that does explain a few things," I sighed.

"Do you know why this is happening to me?" Weiss asked curiously.

I nodded. "Yes. You see, Masters and Servants have what you call a dream cycle, due to their bond with each other. At certain times when you are dreaming, you will see the Servant's own life memories and vice versa. Although, I am not sure why you are not getting my own memories, but it may be due to my unique situation."

"Your unique situation?" Weiss frowned as she digested my brief explanation.

"Well, unlike most heroic spirits who have earned their way to the Throne of Heroes, I was fused with a certain Heroic Spirit. That Heroic Spirit was Artoria Pendragon, the young woman that you have seen in your dream. You may be seeing her memories instead." I explained.

"Artoria Pendragon…Who was she?" Weiss asked.

I smiled sadly. "You wouldn't know her in this world, but her legend is very famous in another world. She was a young woman who was born into a time of chaos after the collapse of an empire and the Dark Ages ensued. There was a prophecy at the time that a king will rise to lead Britain out of the darkness. That king in the prophecy was Artoria. But at the time, girls were not considered to be candidates for kings."

"Wait, girls cannot be kings?" Weiss questioned rather indignantly.

I nodded my head. "It is understandable that this comes as a shock to you as Remnant is quite an egalitarian society in terms of gender. But at that time and place, it was quite unusual at the time for a woman to hold important positions of power, never mind being a king. That is why her legend depicted King Arthur as a male figure as she hid her gender from everyone except for the trusted few."

"T-that's…wrong," Weiss muttered softly.

I pursed my lips. "It is. No one should live a life like that. But it was her reality at the time, yet it didn't stop her from becoming the king. So Artoria was disguised as a young boy and was trained a knight. Merlin, who was the hooded man in your dream, was a powerful Magus that guided and advised the king-to-be."

I continued my story in a trance. "When she was a mere fifteen years, she joined the other men to decide the king by pulling that sword. While others couldn't make the sword budge an inch, she was able to pull it out and was declared king. From then on, she founded the Kingdom of Camelot and had many famous knights under her command; the Knights of Round Table. She was the perfect king and no one doubted her to be wrong in her rule. Yet she was a lonely person as some people did not see her as a human being and she sealed her many of her emotions inside to act as the king. Artoria did not have a happy life, but she accepted her responsibility to the very end for the country she wanted to save."

"…But she didn't save her country, did she?" Weiss realized in a sad tone.

"Perhaps. But it was not her fault and she truly did her best as king. Her accomplishments are nothing something to dismiss and humanity still remembers her famous story," I responded with a sigh. "She is a hero, no doubt."

"She seems like a great person," Weiss agreed before pausing. "…Could you tell me more about her story, Gray?"

"…" I admit that I was slightly troubled by her request. Artoria was a great figure, there was no doubt about that. But her legend also hides great darkness and tragedy. Should I tell Weiss about those as well? How should I tell the story of Artoria? A king who once wished to give up everything she had accomplished because of her regrets? Or a woman who kept and accepted her humanity to the very end?

_Legends are told to learn about the heroes, both good and bad. How could one learn about someone that great without seeing their flaws as well? Heroes are still beings with thoughts and feelings of their own. They are still people._

"She is. And she is a kind and noble person in heart." I answered quietly as I finally made up my mind. "So I promise I will tell you everything about her in time. But it is a long story."

* * *

The remaining months of my stay in the SDC mansion have passed by in a blur. Of course, they weren't uneventful by any means, but those were other stories to recollect later. If I have to say the one thing that has changed the most during those months, it would be Weiss herself.

I admit that I was surprised of how much she has changed physically from how she had appeared in the show. She still kept her white hair in a loose ponytail though it was trimmed a little shorter than normal. Her height though has gone up about two more inches and her curves were a bit more filled in, which was unexpected (though I do think Weiss was quite pleased about it).

Her choice of clothing is now a dark-blue and white-gray dress with a white Schnee emblem on her backside. Of course, she was wearing the armor that I created for her along with dark-blue blade resistant gloves over hands (which hid her command seals at my suggestion). She occasionally wore a bright red scarf around her neck whenever she went outside into the cold Altesian weather.

But I think her demeanor was what had changed the most from what I can observe. Far from the icy exterior and doubts that plagued her for majority of her life, Weiss was…much open-minded and considerate than before. Don't get me wrong, she still has the usual dedicated and strict attitude to the core. She is still Weiss after all.

But Weiss no longer has the overbearing arrogance or uncertainty within her as before. While I cannot be sure, I believe that Weiss has managed to make peace with some of the doubts and insecurities in her life. She has become more of the person that she would be proud to be.

Weiss may have been able to mature by herself in the show, but it is hard to deny that my presence hasn't affected her character at this point. I may not be the best role model for her, but I made sure she was at least doing okay as a person. And I admit it makes me happy to see her like this than when she had first returned to Atlas.

Of course, I didn't really change much physically as a Servant. But my stat sheet indicated that I also indeed had changed since I stayed with Weiss in the mansion.

* * *

**Stats Sheet of Saber (3)**

**True Name: Gray Pendragon**

**Master: Weiss Schnee**

**Gender: Male**

**Height: 178 cm**

**Weight: 70 kg**

**Alignment: True Neutral**

**Class: Saber**

**Strength: B+**

**Endurance: C+**

**Agility: B**

**Magic: A**

**Luck: A**

**Noble Phantasm: C-EX**

**Class Skills**

**Magic Resistance: B**

**Riding: B**

**Personal Skills**

**Mana Burst: A**

**Charisma: B**

**Instinct: B+**

**?**

**?**

**Noble Phantasms**

**Invisible Air (Anti-Unit): C**

**Excalibur (Anti-Fortress): A++**

**Avalon (Barrier): EX**

**?**

**Servant Evaluation: Gray Pendragon is a servant that has gained the abilities of Saber Class Servant Artoria Pendragon. His current Master is Weiss Schnee. He cares a lot for his Master whom trusts him greatly in turn. The true potential of Gray Pendragon is still hidden despite of his continued training. Most of the stats have been restored to Artoria's prime. Gray Pendragon is an enigma of a Servant as his existence's purpose is still unknown.**

* * *

**Instinct (B+): Sharpened sixth sense that nearly reach the realm of predicting the future. It is possible to halve penalties inflicted by auditory and visual interference. Originally downgraded, it has been partially restored for Gray Pendragon after absorbing some of Artoria's combat experience.**

* * *

My physical stats have definitely improved from my continued training sessions and that I was able to finally raise my combat instincts slightly by going through Saber's experiences. Of course, I haven't unlocked any of my hidden skills or such yet, but I am quite satisfied with my current progress right now. And I have picked up a few tricks here and there as well.

It was interesting to note that my Servant Evaluation depicts me as someone who cares a lot for Weiss. I admit Weiss wasn't really one of my most favorite characters in RWBY to begin with. But living and sparring with the actual person herself really changes one's perspective. And now, I do really see Weiss as someone very special to me. I…don't really know how I will feel if I had to leave her one day.

Despite of the changes that happened to both of us, our goals remained the same as when we had started. We were willing to put behind our desires for others' needs. We made our choices to take this path. And we trusted each other. We never talked about it explicitly to each other, but we understood it nonetheless. Perhaps…there is some substance to the idea that a summoned Servant usually has a good affinity with their Master (barring catalysts).

_Just as we have changed, life doesn't stay the same for long. The story must go on._

It was today when Weiss and I were enjoying a nice moment of peace and quiet together. It was one of those off-training days and the weather was frankly quite nice in Atlas. I was reading one of the books I found in the library; it was a fictional story concerning the Great War in the view of a Mantlean noble lady. Weiss, on the other hand, was doing some personal weapon maintenance; she was making sure that Myrtenaster's dust revolving chamber was functioning correctly.

The bedroom door had just opened then. It was Klein.

Klein entered and closed the door behind him. He then clears his throat. "Pardon the interruption, Ms. Schnee, but your father wishes to speak with you."

Weiss then looked at him before nodding. "Thank you, Klein."

She carefully puts her rapier away before heading towards her father's study. But she was not alone.

_I was silently following her in spirit form and wondering what could have changed since Volume 3…_

* * *

**This chapter was a little late in its intended release due to time constraints and editing.**

**I know that quite a few people were upset about the idea of adding more servants to the story. I have thought about the possibility of having Gray being the lone servant, but then I thought that wouldn't be such an interesting story in the end. Many of reviews gave me some doubt to continue this. But I am still determined to keep writing no matter what.**

**However… it is one thing to be upset with the story plot. I can understand that. Not every story is one's cup of tea. There are many other good Fate/RWBY fanfics to read.**

**Yet it is quite another thing to judge the story will be totally ruined by just one chapter (or that I personally ruined the story). I honestly don't know if this fanfic will turn out to be good or not. But I am damn proud to say I wrote this very story by myself and as a first-time writer. Creative writing is not easy and I recognize that personally.**

**So I will be releasing a RWBY one-shot later this week for you readers. Kudos to you.**

**As for rules and consistencies, I will try my best to work with them as we go along in the story. To be fair, the Fate Universe is a bit notorious about breaking rules and RWBY universe has plenty of inconsistencies. It is a fanfic for a reason.**

**A side note: I will probably releasing a new RWBY fanfic in late June or early July as soon as I get a few solid chapters down. More details will be released later.**

**So thank you for reading my fanfic and please favorite and follow this story (and its author) if you can!**


	21. Ch 16: Break the Dusty Chains

**I do not own the RWBY or Fate Universes. Enjoy reading.**

* * *

**Chapter Sixteen: Break the Dusty Chains**

* * *

I watched Weiss quietly as she stands alone in a large empty stage and singing a beautiful aria. The multiple white spotlights seemingly give an ethereal glow to her form. While I knew that Weiss didn't particularly like these singing events, there was a good reason why so many people showed up to see her sing.

_She could be a genuine singing idol if she wanted to. She got talent._

Past memories resurfaced in my mind as I closed my eyes in thought. Both mine and Saber's. I felt…sad and nostalgic as I remembered things that (Saber and) I regretted deeply and yet others that we cherished greatly as well. I had many doubts when I accepted the choice of coming to Remnant.

_Did I make the right choice coming over here? Was there something I did that I would regret later? Do I know what to do in the end? Was I doing the right thing?_

Yet those doubts were washed away as I continued to listen to Weiss's song. It was pure yet emotional.

_I am not alone in my journey. She asked for my help. So I answered gladly. I have no regrets about that choice. She is someone I would not regret having as my Master._

I had to wipe away a small tear from my eyes as Weiss finishes her song and the applauding crowd claps loudly for her. Even with conflicting thoughts, I smiled broadly at her as I clapped loudly with the audience. I know that Weiss will do fine. She has grown up as a fine young woman with a purpose in mind.

I then glanced up at the upper right balcony where her father and her brother were watching from with a slight frown. There have been a few slight changes to what I have remembered from the RWBY canon. I won't describe everything, but there were two specific things that stood out to me the most.

For one, Whitley didn't show up to confront Weiss when she went to meet with her father. Even though, I haven't seen Whitley a lot during my stay at the mansion, there were a few times that I actually met him personally. One memorable meeting is when I was helping myself to crepes that Klein had made for me. It was…an interesting confrontation to say.

* * *

**(Flashback)**

_It was one of those rare days as I was enjoying a delicious strawberry crepe that Klein had recently prepared for me before leaving in a sudden hurry. For a butler, he was certainly quite busy these days in the mansion. I wondered how he could have made this crepe so fluffy and tender. Truly mysterious, indeed. _

_It was then that **he **came in. It was a thin boy with white hair that had strolled into the kitchen unannounced. I immediately recognized him on sight as Weiss's younger brother, Whitley Schnee. But…what was he doing here in the kitchen?_

_But I stayed calm and continued devouring my crepes despite of his unexpected appearance. I had little reason to fear of being revealed here as an uninvited guest. I was wearing my servant attire and I looked just like any other servant in the mansion. But that somehow convinced Whitley that I was an actual servant of the mansion when he approached me._

_"Excuse me there, I have something to ask of you," Whitley said politely with his hands clasped behind his back. _

_I swallowed my last bite before replying. "Yes, what can I help you with?"_

_"Would you be privy to the whereabouts of Klein? I couldn't get a hold of him through my Scroll," Whitley gestured his left hand outwards._

_I shook my head. "I'm afraid not. I believe he is currently busy with something right now."_

_"Is that so? It is unfortunate, as I was going to request him for some crepes…" Whitley's words trailed off as he finally eyed my huge stack of crepes in front of me. Klein had knew about my inhuman appetite and rolled up his sleeves to prepare a huge stack of crepes for me as a snack. What a thoughtful butler. _

_But Whitley's ice blue eyes looked at my emerald green eyes, and then looked again at the stack of crepes. Warning bells rang in my mind. My food is in danger by this teenager._

_I immediately wrapped my arms around **my**_ _stack of crepes and glared at Whitley guardedly. No one takes my food, especially not him. "This is mine…"_

_Whitley raised his hands up defensively. "Now, surely you have more than enough crepes there? Don't be so greedy. I honestly don't know why Klein gave you so much in the first place."_

_"I'm warning you; **do not touch my crepes**…"I repeated again with added dark edge in my voice._

_Whitley obviously didn't get the message as he now had a slight frown on his face. "I don't know who you are, but as one of the servants in this house, your main duty is to serve the Schnee family and their needs. So if you excuse me, I will take some of those crepes for myself."_

_Whitley then picked up a nearby fork to spear a few when I suddenly grabbed his wrist and held his hand in place. Looking back, I admit it wasn't a very rational action. But I was a bit more than pissed off at this snobby kid._

_"Wha-?How dare you? Get your hands off of me!" Whitley's polite composure crumbles into an indignant expression. Yet his pitiful attempts to take my iron grip off his wrist were really laughable to me._

_I looked at Whitley with slight irritation and I proceeded to stand up to my full height. I did let go of his wrist, only to immediately grab his collar and hoist him up high in the air. As I said, Whitley was quite a scrawny kid and he isn't that much taller than Weiss. His nerveless fingers let the fork slip through and fall on the floor noisily as he looked at me quite terrified._

_I spoke in a calm voice as Whitley gulped nervously at his now-precarious situation. "Now, listen here, shrimp. You may be one of the masters of this house. But there are some things that you cannot steal from me. And my food is one of them. Klein had made these delicious crepes just for me and this amount isn't strange for my appetite. If you want crepes, then you can ask Klein politely later to make more of them."_

_"D-do…you have any idea… of what you are doing? Father won't let you out easily if you treat me like this!" Whitley sputtered out somewhat defiantly._

_I initially frowned at his boldness before smirking. Two can play at that game of chicken. "Oh? Are you really spineless yourself to run back to your so-called father of yours for help? What would do when your father of yours abandons you one day? Who else in your family is going to help you out if you keep up this fake sweet attitude of yours, hmm?"_

_"I…" Whitley answers hesitatingly before falling silent, unable to refute my reasoning. Whitley had the best relationship with his father at the cost of alienating nearly the rest of the family and probably even idolizes him. But Jacques himself just probably views Whitley as more of a better prized tool than his sisters as he seems more receptive to his authoritarian and controlling attitude. But who knows when, not if, that will end?_

_But I glanced at his rather defeated state before sighing inwardly. What was I doing here? Was I really bullying a teenager who had no real family besides your father over a plate of crepes? Sure, he is quite a pain in the ass and there is a good reason why Weiss doesn't get along with him. But he isn't an inherently evil person in the end._

_"Look at me, lad," Whitley complied as his watery blue eyes met mine. "I don't claim to know about your problems. But perhaps you should stop this charade of yours and open your eyes to the truth. Your own resentment and anger at others will only lead to more hurt for you. Your father isn't the best man to emulate as a person. It is a known fact that a lot of people don't like him for one reason or another. It will lead him to certain ruin. The question is, are you willing to follow him to certain hell for that worship? Or are you willing to find your own path that will suit you better in the end?"_

_Whitley stayed silent at my question though he seemed to be thinking a little. I sighed as I concluded my lesson. "If you promise to not tell your father about this, then I can concur on sharing a few crepes with you. But I suggest that you change yourself to be better than your father as a person at least. Do you understand?"_

_ "But…"_

_"Do you understand?!" I repeated a bit more forcibly._

_"Yes, I do! Sir!" Whitney bobbed his head rapidly. _

_I studied him for a few uncomfortable seconds before letting him down gently on his feet. "Good. But if you show that kind of attitude to me or others in this house, I will find you and teach you another lesson about manners."_

_I sat down on the table and transferred a few crepes to another plate. I still had a monster share of the food, so it wasn't much of a loss to me. I looked at Whitney, who was still ramrod straight like a perfectly disciplined soldier._

_I raised my brow at his strange behavior. "Well, are you going to stand there or sit down to eat?"_

_Whitney eventually took a seat to eat, albeit uncomfortably. I raised a brow at his unusual meekness, but I shrugged my shoulders and began eating myself. It was probably a strange sight to see; a stubborn servant and a rather meek master eating at the same table._

**(End Flashback)**

* * *

Anyways, Whitley isn't the type to let go at the chance of getting back at his older sister. They do have an unusual antagonistic sibling relationship. But it could be a minor change due to my presence and he isn't entirely important to my plans.

The second change was that fact that Jacques Schnee seemed a little miffed. If you think that wasn't strange, it was more about what exactly irritated him.

Jacques's meeting with General Ironwood about the Dust Embargo certainly happened and they were not best buddies about that subject as expected. But he was also complaining about how the company board was pressuring him to raise wages of workers in Mantle. It is quite odd as I don't remember him getting any trouble from the SDC, nor that anyone else wanted better working conditions in the top ranks of the company. I hardly think I had much role in promoting better working conditions in the SDC, no matter how much I agree with the sentiment. But his bad mood was still there and Jacques wanted Weiss to sing at the charity event to improve the company image by supporting Beacon reconstruction efforts. Though I suspected that was to reassure that his control was still absolute over his family at least…

I was somewhat glad to overhear news that now-Headmistress Goodwitch and the Vale huntsmen have finally were able to retake Beacon Academy and purge out the remaining Grimm. Yet the damage was extensive and it required some time and funds to rebuild the school back to its former glory. Hopefully, they will be up and running as the secret war against Salem will get much more large-scaled and open…

As Weiss finally takes her leave from the stage, I stood up and joined the rest of the crowd as we proceeded to the charity party. I already had my own party invitation (courtesy of Willow herself), and I might as well enjoy myself tonight. I do hope they have some decent food at least…

* * *

A few moments later…

_I really hate charity parties. But at least I look pretty good._

I was dressed in White Rose attire (Saber Prototype), which consisted of a formal white suit clothing and blue tie. I mainly chose this as it fitted the usual white and blue Atlas colored attire and I really like its style. It was also rather comfortable on me surprisingly.

Unfortunately, it would seem that many young women in the party would strongly agree with my thoughts. I never had such luck with the opposite sex yet so many women were approaching me with such interest. In fact, I was a bit nervous in how some of the women were looking at me like a pretty trophy to be won.

And one such woman was currently flirting with me.

"Hello there, may I have a pleasure of hearing your name…?" A red-hair woman in a red dress asked me with a sultry smile gracing her lips. Her golden amber eyes glimmered as she had an adoring look at me.

"…Who are you?" I spoke neutrally to her. I took another sip of my non-alcoholic beverage that a waiter had offered me earlier. It was quite tangy in taste.

There was a slight contortion on her face before it is replaced by a flirting smile. No luck there. She doesn't seem much deterred by my subtle rejection. "Oh, my apologies. It is Lilvina Steele."

"Miss Steele, you say?" I smiled in fake interest. Seeing her rather eager nod, I then recalled an interesting tidbit from my eavesdropping regarding her. Looking at a certain direction, my smile widened even more. Oh ho, this might be a little fun.

"If I remembered correctly, don't you have a fiancé?" I asked a bit loudly.

"Him? He is just a moneybag to me. He has no other redeeming qualities and…is a quick shot," Lilvina scoffed at my question. Interesting... but I seriously didn't really need to know about the last part. And I'm sure _he_ would be quite devastated to hear that…

"Is that so…? Then you don't mind saying those exact words to him?" I slightly gestured behind her figure.

"Lilvy?"

Lilvina whirls around, only to shockingly see a young man in his earlier thirties. Her fiancé looks rather distraught from hearing her words.

"Ron?! No…wait, this is not what it looks like?!" Lilvina shouted out in panic as the young man suddenly ran off in utter shame. I watched as the young soon-to-be ex-couple exited the party quickly before shrugging and moving on to a more secluded location. That was bound to happen sooner than later.

At least the entertainment in these kinds of parties isn't that half-bad.

* * *

Seeing that I was somewhat safe now, I took a peek at Weiss, who was standing by her father's side. She was looking a bit peeved at me.

_"Why are those women always propositioning to you whenever I am not around?" Weiss complained irritatingly to me._

_"Believe me, I blame my Charisma Skill for this. And I am not interested in these rather shallow women," I defended myself with a mental thought. _

_"Hmph, what would you do if there are men flirting with me?" Weiss asked me rather sarcastically._

_"I will stab them with my sword if they are not worthy of you. Stab them again if they performed any inappropriate advances. Stab them one more time if I don't like them." I replied seriously without slight hesitation. "Then I will dice them up finely for good measure."_

_"…"_

_"…You know, Gray? You sometimes scare me," Weiss replied after a slight pause._

_"I know. But I feel it is necessary to deal with such unworthy opponents," I answered darkly._

I paused in our conversation to deliver a withering death glare at one Henry Marigold, who was eyeing Weiss a bit too closely for my comfort. He immediately flinched and looked around fearfully until his light-brown eyes met mine. I gave him a smile that didn't quite reach my eyes. He then coughed nervously before hurriedly excusing himself from the party. Good riddance.

Weiss raised her eyebrow in amusement at this scene. _"Well… it is not like I don't appreciate your earnest efforts for me. But I may have some difficulty finding someone worthy under your standards." _

_"That is the point." I said dryly. "And Weiss, do you mind meeting up with me?"_

_"I don't mind, but why?"_

_"Well…you seem like you could use a breather from a certain jackass Schnee," I joked._

Weiss suddenly coughed a bit before glaring at me from afar.

_"Gray! You... shouldn't say things like that!" Weiss scolded me for my comment._

_"But isn't it true?" I asked rather slyly._

_"…" Weiss couldn't refute with my reasoning._

_"Anyways, meet me by the painting of Beacon Academy, we do have some important things to discuss," I said afterwards._

_"…I swear that you will cause me more headaches than Ruby ever would," Weiss finally grumbled before our mental link was cut off._

* * *

I chuckled at her statement as I strolled over to the meeting location and waited for Weiss to come over. I decided to admire the painting of Beacon Academy during my wait. It was a large and masterful painting with shades of greens, browns, and yellows dominating the canvas. It had that surreal feeling to it; a beautiful memory of the past yet a painful scar for the future.

_A recollection of its former glory._

I didn't know when Weiss had came over to my side, but she was just over a meter apart from me. Yet we didn't immediately talk to each other as we gazed upon the painting for a wistful mutual moment. It was rather nice.

Weiss was one who first broke the silence between us. "Is there a reason why you chose this place to meet?"

"Not really. But it is a secluded place to talk," I replied lightheartedly.

"So what is it that you want to talk about that you couldn't just say over mentally?" Weiss questioned as she slightly turned her head towards me.

"Well, I just felt like talking to you normally. And the party wasn't as fun as I thought," I hummed lightly.

Weiss could only stare at me for my casual remark before letting out a soft sigh. "Well, it isn't like I don't appreciate your company now. But what are you planning really?"

I finally looked at her. "…I think it is about time that we should leave Atlas."

"Leave Atlas…?! Do you mean going out to join up with Ruby and others?" Weiss asked me somewhat eagerly.

I nodded slightly. "Yes. Both of us have gotten stronger ever since and it is about time that we should go before it is too late to do so. Haven Academy will be targeted soon and Atlas is shutting down its borders."

"What?! Haven Academy will be targeted?!" Weiss nearly hissed at me.

"Yes, as you know the perpetrators had records from Haven Academy. Ruby and others will most likely travel to Mistral sooner than later based on that fact. There is also news about increasing instability there and Haven Academy will certainly be the center of this turmoil if you know what I mean," I explained to her.

"The relic…" Weiss realized. "We would have to stop Salem and her minions from getting it. But I thought they would need to have a Maiden to open the vault. So I assume…there are some problems with that specific Maiden?"

"Yes, there are a few problems. It is nothing to worry about right now, but we would have to move quickly," I answered.

Her finger tapped against the rail in deep thought. "So, what is our plan to get over there? I doubt we could just leave through the front door easily with my father around."

I then revealed my plans to her. "For now, don't draw any attention during the party. We will leave soon afterwards tonight. I have already told Klein to prepare an airship to smuggle us out to Mistral through the Atlas blockade."

"Alright," Weiss concurred. Yet she seems a bit troubled...

"Weiss, don't worry. We will meet with your friends soon one way or another. I promise you." I reassured her. "You just need to be patient for now."

"I know," Weiss answered quietly.

The party eventually (and thankfully) ended peacefully without any notable incidents and Weiss returned to her bedroom, where I was already waiting for her. Her weapon, combat clothing, and dust supplies were already packed for her on the bedside. I carried a black backpack myself that was filled with some items that I thought would be useful for the journey. You can't be too prepared for anything.

"Are you ready, Weiss? You can't go back being a SDC heiress after this," I asked her quietly after Weiss had changed back into her combat attire inside her bedroom.

"Yes, Gray. I already know the consequences. Now let's go." Weiss replied resolutely with her Myrtenaster in hand. She looked around carefully for any people outside in the hallway before following me closely. It is good thing that she was being cautious, but I have already checked several times. There was no one nearby currently.

Yet Weiss's next steps slowed down to a halt.

I turned around to see Weiss curiously. She had some hesitation in her face. "What is it, Weiss?"

"Could…we stop by somewhere for a moment?" Weiss requested.

I slightly frowned before nodding. "Alright, it is a little risky, but we could spare some time. But we will have to get out of here soon after that."

Weiss nodded at me graciously before moving the opposite direction across the hallway with her steps muffled. I silently followed after her, having a good idea of where she was going.

It was a short trip before we finally stopped by the door of Willow's bedroom.

"Gray, I just need to talk to my mom for a moment. Do you mind waiting outside? It won't take that long," Weiss asked me.

"Of course," I replied earnestly. Weiss whispered a thank you to me before silently entering the room. In the meanwhile, I kept a careful watch outside with a smile.

* * *

Weiss closed the door behind her as she looked around in the room for her mother. She then found Willow reading a book on the desk with a steaming cup of tea. Complex feelings rose in her heart.

"Mom…?" Weiss spoke out hesitantly. Willow turned her head around.

"Weiss, is that you? What are doing up so late?" Willow asked worriedly as she got up from her desk.

"I…have something to tell you." Weiss spoke out softly.

"What is it, dear?" Willow asked patiently as she stood in front of Weiss.

"I-I have to leave this house for a while… and I wish to say goodbye to you," Weiss confessed. She knew that it was a cruel thing to do to her recovering mother. But at least, Weiss didn't want to leave without saying any words to her mother.

Then Willow's arms wrapped around her shoulders to Weiss's surprise. "I know," Willow answered softly as she hugged Weiss tightly in her arms.

"You…knew?" Weiss asked in half-shock.

"Saber had told me about this earlier. So I was prepared for the fact that you will be leaving this house sooner than later. But I am still glad to able to hold you in my arms one last time," Willow explained.

Weiss would have to question Gray later about this. But for now, Weiss returned the hug back to her mother. It was a nice feeling. "I'm sorry that I have to leave you now."

Willow then sighed heavily. "I also wish I could hold you closely forever, but Saber told me that you had a very important role to fulfill. So it is my responsibility as your mother to assure you that you aren't doing anything wrong here and I support your decision. Just… remember not to forget the people behind you."

"I will. And…thank you," Weiss wiped her eyes.

"There is no need to thank me. If you ever have to come back to Atlas one day, you can rest assure that I will be there for you," Willow brushed Weiss's hair with affection.

Willow then smiled rather teasingly. "Also, it would be prudent to capture your bodyguard's heart during your journey. I do wish to have plenty of grandchildren to play with, you know."

"Mom…?!" Weiss cried out as her cheeks turned dark red.

Willow waved her hand away. "I was only half-joking there."

Somehow, Weiss didn't feel quite at ease at that answer.

"Now go, before your father finds out. Your friends are waiting for you," Willow shoo her away with a sad smile.

Weiss nodded tearfully before taking her leave. When the door finally closed behind Weiss with a click, Willow sighed as she closed her eyes for a moment.

Yet when Willow opened her eyes again, they now held something that many had thought was long lost in the Schnee matriarch.

_Defiance._

* * *

When Weiss came out and silently closed the door behind her, I looked at her concerningly. "Are you feeling okay?"

Weiss nodded as she wiped her eyes. "I'm fine now, Gray. Let's go."

We deftly went our way through the mansion to the hidden passageway by the first floor library that Klein had shown me. Thankfully, there weren't any hindrances this time around.

Speaking of whom, Klein was waiting for us when we had quietly entered the first floor library. Weiss ran toward Klein, dropping her luggage and weapons onto the floor to hug him.

Klein hugged Weiss back and worriedly asked, "Are you sure that Mistral is safe?"

Weiss then released the hug and backed away. "No, but I will have Saber with me on this journey."

"Well, I suppose that he will keep you safe." Klein relented before looking at me.

"I will," I assured him.

"Then I suppose your older sister and mother will be the only family you have left after tonight." Klein sighed ruefully.

"I always have you," Weiss said after she comforted him.

"You most certainly will," Klein replied back in earnest with a slight smile. "Now go."

Weiss and I entered into the hidden passageway, where Weiss then looked back one last time and said, "Thank you, Klein."

Klein only nodded in silence and closed the exit behind us. There was no going back now.

* * *

Weiss was relatively silent as we made our way through the passageway to the outside. From there, we eventually made our way to a private airship hanger. We met with our arranged pilot, where I handed him the bundle of lien to smuggle us to Mistral.

He deftly counted the lien given to him before looking up at us. "Okay, you two can hide out in the cargo hold. I can take you as far as I can, but if we get caught, you two are on your own. Understand?"

We nodded at his statement and promptly entered the cargo hold of the brown airship. The cargo airship then took off without a hitch a few minutes later. Weiss and I gazed upon the rising sun over the mountains of Solitas together as we were heading down southeast to Mistral.

"Gray?" Weiss finally spoke out to me.

"Yes, Weiss?" I replied.

"You told my mom that we were leaving in advance?"

I shrugged my shoulders to affirm her question. "Yes."

Weiss glanced at me. "Why?"

"Your mother may have not understood why you are leaving specifically, but I feel she has the right to know if her daughter is going to be okay. If you had left without a word, she might have been lost and worried without any explanation. Even though she seems to understand you better now… and I find it good thing that you considered about your mother's feelings before leaving," I explained with a smirk.

"I…didn't think much about that. I just wish to leave without any regrets," Weiss muttered under her breath. "It isn't like I am going to see her again soon."

I snorted inwardly. Weiss, you are going back to Atlas pretty soon after escaping to Mistral. Not that she knows about it yet…

"…Do you think we can win against Salem?" Weiss suddenly asked me.

I paused for a moment before speaking. "If you believe that victory is possible and you are not alone, then yes, we can win against her. And since you have me, I will bring you the promised victory."

"The promised victory?" Weiss repeated in confusion.

"Yes, it is the promised victory that every person seeks in their very hearts," I said mysteriously. "You just have to wait for me to show it to you at the right time."

"…Then I will put my hopes into you," Weiss told me.

"I won't disappoint you," I replied as I reclined back on one of the crates.

Shutting my eyes for a moment, I reviewed my knowledge and plans once more. I knew that we were leaving a bit earlier than expected, but we don't really have the luxury of plot relevance at this point. The current timeline was already unraveling from the original plot itself and I am consistently losing my future plot knowledge. I will lose my initial advantage pretty soon.

But as I cracked one green eye open to see Weiss, I don't really care about that at this point.

_Her beautiful smile was all that mattered to me right now._

* * *

**So we have finally reached the end of the training arc. As we go into our next arc (Haven Arc), I will probably releasing another character interlude for a transition. **

**I would like to thank my readers for supporting this story (which is about 8 months old by now) as we finally reached the 1000 favorites and 1000 follows mark. Thank you again for your continued support. I know that the story is a bit slow-paced, but I prefer to flesh out some of the details of the characters before getting into the action. And there are still many of you still leery of the idea of having more than one Servant in this story. Understandable, but I will try my best to make it work. **

**A side note: The new RWBY fanfic is an OC-centric non-crossover story and probably be rated M for certain reasons. It is expected to be a long-term story like this one. More details shall be released later.**

**Please stay healthy and safe out there. And please support my work as you read inside your homes. Thank you.**


	22. Interlude: Oscar

**I don't own the Fate or RWBY universes.**

* * *

**Interlude: Oscar**

* * *

A short and hazel-eyed teenager sighed tiredly as he walked through the dark streets of Mistral. "Are you sure you know where we are going?"

"_Patience, Oscar. I have a friend there who can help us out. The location was a pre-arranged set-up between us, just in case something had happened to me," Ozpin replied in his head._

"If you say so," Oscar said. Truthfully, he didn't mind the long walk. Oscar hasn't seen much of the outside world beyond his village and thus was understandably awed at the sight of a huge city like Mistral.

The long walk also allowed Oscar some time to think about his rather unique 'magical' situation. Just a few weeks ago, he had been madly pacing around his home and vainly convincing himself that the voices in his head _certainly _did not exist. But when Oscar started to remember memories that clearly didn't belong to him, he finally admitted things weren't the same anymore. And it took another few more days after that for Ozpin to convince Oscar to leave his aunt's farm to go to Haven Academy.

In order to save Remnant, apparently.

But…it would be a lie if Oscar said he didn't dream of becoming a bit more special than a simple farm boy (though certainly not at this scale). Still, if everything what Ozpin had said to him was true, where did that leave Oscar Pine? His soul wasn't solely his own anymore. Who was he in the end?

"_Oscar, you are same as you always been," Ozpin interrupted him after sensing Oscar's inner fears. "You are a good person, Oscar. I wish I didn't have to overturn your peaceful life, but Remnant is in grave danger. It needs us both to save it."_

"Then what can I do?" Oscar asked him challengingly. "I have no prior training or experience as a huntsman. Nor do I have anything else useful to offer in this situation."

"_You have me, Oscar," Ozpin reminded him. "I am a strong huntsman and a former headmaster of Beacon to boot, you know. I am sure that we can whip you up to fighting shape and more in due time."_

Right, Oscar had nearly forgotten about that little detail. Still, Oscar had a healthy dose of apprehension (and fear) whether he can keep up in a fight that was clearly out of his league.

"_And in any case of serious danger, I will be in command to protect both of us," Ozpin added later._

Oscar nodded though not without a sense of bitterness. He was very uncomfortable with the idea of someone taking over his body and Oscar was sure he was never going to get used to it ever. The first time that Oscar allowed Ozpin in control, the sensation felt so alien to him that Oscar immediately took back control instinctively. The process was hard to describe exactly, but it is like moving into the backseat of a moving vehicle to let Ozpin into the driving seat. He could somewhat tell what his body was doing, but it was ultimately up to Ozpin what he would do next. Of course, Oscar could wrestle back control unilaterally, but he suspected Ozpin was somewhat cooperative in that aspect.

_What if Ozpin didn't feel like giving up control easily? Will 'Oscar' even exist after that? But Ozpin wouldn't ever do that to him, right?_

Oscar finally snapped out of his dark thoughts as he somehow found himself inside a small alley. Huh, he must have gotten so distracted to take a wrong turn here. Oscar sighed heavily as he turned around to exit, only to see a rather dense haze appear suddenly all around him.

As the fog soon thickened visibly around him, Oscar started to cough badly as he collapsed onto his knees. His vision started to blur while his throat burned…it was getting hard… to breathe…

"_Oscar! Activate your Aura now!" Ozpin shouted at him urgently._

Right… Oscar closed his eyes and concentrated inwardly just like how Ozpin had briefly taught him to do before. When his eyes opened again a few moments later, an emerald-green glow now covered the entirety of his body before seemingly fading away visibly. His eyes were still stinging and his throat felt raw, but he was breathing much easier now. More importantly, he was still alive.

"_Oscar, are you alright?!" Ozpin exclaimed in worry._

Oscar coughed out a few more times as his vision returned back to normal. "Gakgh! Gak! Kak...! I-I'm fine…this fog has something strange in it."

"_Poison. Thankfully, we managed to unlock your Aura before in case of a situation like this. But you obviously need more training to subconsciously have a cloak of Aura on at all times." Ozpin grimly concluded._

Oscar did note that his Aura was easier to activate this time around as he cautiously stood up on his feet. He looked out cautiously and noticed that the entirety of street was covered with this strange smoky white-grey mist. He had the feeling this wasn't normal in any sense.

"Um, Ozpin? Do you know anything about this fog?" Oscar asked nervously.

"…_No. I am afraid this is quite unusual from my years of knowledge. While it is true that Mistral does get periodic fogs, it is certainly not like this one. It is no wonder that the streets are empty at this time," Ozpin responded in a troubled tone._

"What do you mean?" Oscar asked.

"_Well, Mistral normally has an active nightlife during this time, especially in the higher areas where we are. But if you hadn't noticed yet, the streets are completely empty right now," Ozpin explained._

Oscar did _note_ that the streets were much emptier right after the sun came down, but he didn't take it much seriously before. But with Ozpin's words in mind, it appears that the people of Mistral weren't staying at home voluntarily. The poisonous fog must have scared them from lingering outside at night.

_But how did this fog appear in the first place?_

His gut churned from anxiety. "I have a bad feeling about this."

"_So do I," Ozpin agreed. "Let us get on the move, shall we?"_

* * *

The quiet and misty scenery made things quite eerie as Oscar's steps echoed throughout Mistral's empty streets. It soon reminded him of the setting of a certain mystery novel about ghosts.

Oscar shuddered and shook his head from those frightening thoughts. That is just a fictional story. Ghosts don't exist in real life.

_Yet magic does exist in real life. So why not ghosts?_

"…_This poison seems to be a strong corrosive substance, judging how it causes a burning sensation to the eyes and throat. Yet this mist has something else mixed in it as well…" Ozpin observed in seemingly deep thought._

"Good to know. But I am more interested in getting out of here," Oscar replied in a sarcastic tone as he walked briskly. Ghosts or not, he would much rather get out of this creepy fog as soon as possible. His Aura did help things a bit, but he could tell he wasn't going to last long at this rate.

"_Of course, but it is interesting to kn-…hold it," Ozpin paused._

"What is it?" Oscar asked.

"_I don't know… But I sense something isn't quite right here… Be on your guard," Ozpin said seriously._

Oscar tensed up as he looked around his surroundings nervously. Ozpin already proved that he had keen experience and senses that Oscar lacked. But something Ozpin himself couldn't pinpoint? What could it be? C-could it even possibly be…a ghost?

"**Are you our Mommy?" **

"Eek!" Oscar whirled around in fright upon hearing an unknown voice.

But instead of seeing a frightening ghost, Oscar found a small child looking at him rather curiously. She appeared to be on the thin and dirty side due to malnutrition and lack of proper hygiene. She had bleach-white hair and pale skin with distinct yellow-greenish eyes. Her attire was consisted no more than her skimpy black rags over a white undershirt. If Oscar didn't know any better, she was like one of those orphans he had found playing earlier in the streets.

However, it was very strange to find a young girl in the streets right now. And how was she doing fine in the middle of a poisonous fog? No normal human can possibly be fine in these conditions.

_Unless… she isn't a normal human._

In the meantime, the said young girl had observed at him closely with a slight frown. Oscar gulped nervously under her strangely evaluative gaze. S-surely, she wouldn't be one of those vengeful ghosts that he had read in his books, right?

The young girl then slowly shook her head in apparent disappointment. "No, you aren't Mommy. You…were like one of us."

"Like you?" Oscar found himself asking curiously despite of his uneasiness of the situation. And what is with her strange way of addressing herself?

"Yup. You didn't know about your Mommy, just like us," The young girl declared rather confidently.

Oscar froze at her words. "H-how did you know that?"

"Easy. Your eyes show us that you lost someone. We thought it was us you lost. But…it was your Mommy." The young girl giggled before quieting down. "…We are trying to find our Mommy again."

Oscar didn't know what to make of her strange answer, but the young girl didn't appear to be lying to him. It was true that he didn't know his birth parents when he grew up. He had only heard that his mother had died giving birth to him and his grieving father committed suicide not long after. Oscar would have been sent to the orphanage if it wasn't for his aunt, who was his mother's younger sister and who ultimately raised him as her own. He was still grateful to her for that.

But this young girl was different. She didn't know who her mother was at all. And she apparently didn't have anyone else who loved her from her appearance. She was a rather pitiful child.

Looking at the young girl's now-gloomy face, Oscar decided to offer his own sympathies. "I'm sorry to hear that. But I do wish you can find your 'mother' soon." His words may be empty hope, but he could at least try to cheer the young girl up from her apparent sadness.

Thankfully, the young girl did seemingly brightened up from his words. "Hn…! We won't give up ever…! You seem like a nice person, what's your name?"

His name? "You can call me Oscar."

The young girl looked thoughtful as she placed a finger upon her lips. "Oscar…then it is only fair we should give ours, right? We are called Jack! Do you want to play with us?"

Jack. What a strange name. "Sorry, I have to go somewhere right now. Maybe we could play at some other time," Oscar apologized.

Jack didn't look too bothered at his answer. "Okay, then! We can play later!"

Oscar blinked as Jack suddenly started to walk away. "Wait, where are you going?"

"We are going to keep looking for Mommy now! Bye-Bye!" Jack replied cheerfully before she disappeared into the fog.

What a strange little girl.

"_That child is unusual," Ozpin commented._

Oscar smiled. "Yeah, but she seemed quite nice as well."

"_Yet you didn't notice how she appeared in the middle of nowhere and seems to be doing much better than you in a fog filled with poison?" Ozpin questioned._

Oscar frowned in thought. "Well, I admit that was a little odd…but that doesn't mean she is a bad person. She just wants to find someone who cares for her."

_Ozpin then sighed in resignation. "I simply ask of you to be careful here. Not everyone is as what they might appear at first. And didn't your aunt teach you not to speak with strangers? And to think that you..."_

Oscar tuned out Ozpin's nagging as he noticed that the fog had cleared up around him. And he finally saw the small tavern that Ozpin had described to him in the far distance. Well, it seems that luck was finally turning around for Oscar Pine.

* * *

As Oscar entered into the small tavern, it was nearly empty inside. But there was a man sitting alone in a bar and looking down at his still-full glass.

"_That's Qrow, right there. Come Oscar, let's introduce ourselves," Ozpin said._

Oscar nodded as he took a few steps closer to the man. "Excuse me."

The man named Qrow turns around to face Oscar. His dull-red eyes glance at him with slight disinterest. "You know, I don't think they allow kids in here, pipsqueak."

"_Te__ll him I'd like my cane back," Ozpin said._

Oscar turns his head slightly in irritation. "Shut up, I'm getting there." He turns his attention back up at Qrow, whose eyes widen slightly before narrowing in slight suspicion and anticipation.

Oscar gathers up his courage to speak again. "Umm… I'm supposed to tell you… I'd like my cane back."

Qrow blinks at his statement and closes his eyes for a brief moment. He then nods with a slight smile before standing up to his full height. This inadvertently causes Oscar to take a couple awkward steps back.

Qrow then retrieves what looks like a collapsed cane from his back hip and looks at it. "Hmm. It's good to see you again, Oz."

Qrow abruptly tosses the cane to Oscar, who catches it reflexively. To Oscar's surprise, the cane immediately extends itself to its full length as one of his fingers accidentally pressed against its button. His other hand automatically grasps its shaft firmly as he examines its intricate workings and design.

It was a long cane with a grey handle embellished with floral patterns. The handle had a large knuckle guard with an opening at the bottom filled with small gold-colored gears. The square gray-black shaft bore many slight dents and scratches, attributing to countless years of use and combat. It felt familiar in his hand, though it was obviously designed for someone of a much taller height.

_The Long Memory. Ozpin's oldest and current weapon of choice._

Oscar then looks up at Qrow with a face of determination despite of his nervousness at his new reality. His adventure has only begun.

_From that point on, there's no going back for Oscar. He will become someone much more than just a simple farm boy. Although…was it alright for Qrow to drink so heavily right now?_

* * *

**This is a just a pretty short interlude before heading back into the main storyline. Oscar and Ozpin are pretty interesting characters to study in context. Oscar starts out not unlike the 'classic hero' as he has shown such key traits and events in the show (such as the 'the call to adventure' and 'mentor'). He is an emphatic person yet more than willing to fight if comes down to it. **

**On the other hand, Ozpin (or Ozma) was already a hero in his first life. But being someone who has been reincarnating for eons with no victory in sight (plus making countless mistakes) led him to become more of a cynical man with secrets. He has the tendency to keep away information that would have been more than helpful to his allies, yet shows he still cares a lot about his students. I would compare him like a cross between Dumbledore and Archer EMIYA in a sense. **

**As for writing them accurately in the story…well, I think I could have done better job. **

**A side note: This is just a question for those readers who would like more Servants in the story. I know that a lot of you don't like adding Servants into the story and I understand your point. But I already have a few solid Servants characters in mind (including this one) to add into the story gradually. **

**So what Servants (include Class) would you like to see in this story and why? (You can also note who that Servant's Master is, but that is optional). Do note that I am just mulling over various ideas at the moment and I may not implement it if it doesn't work plot-wise. But I do appreciate any ideas you can come up with.**

**If you are reading this story, then please take some time to favorite and follow this story and its author. Thank you for your support.**


	23. Ch 17: Saber Kills Lancers

**I don't own the RWBY or Fate Universes. Enjoy reading!**

* * *

**Chapter Seventeen: Saber Kills Lancers**

* * *

The sun was already high above the horizon as our lone airship flew across southern part of Lake Matsu. The bright turquoise waters and sunny skies reminded me once again that Remnant was a beautiful and diverse planet…if you didn't account for the numerous Grimm crawling around. I took a brief yet appreciative gaze upon the beauty of the area before letting out a troubled sigh.

I admit that I was a bit tense ever since we flew through Northern Anima earlier. That area was widely known to have heavy Atlesian military presence, which meant extensive military radar systems scoping for any stray ships. There had been a good chance that we could have gotten caught at anytime. Thankfully, our experienced pilot knew what he was doing and we were able to sneak past by without a hitch in our flight.

Weiss had earlier gone up to the cockpit to speak with the pilot, but I elected to stay behind to privately ponder over some matters. I was chewing over the possible events that may have happened since I had disappeared for several months after the Battle of Beacon.

Okay… let's start with the important RWBY characters.

Ruby and Team JNPR should be in Mistral by now with Qrow Branwen tagging along. This probably hasn't changed as the perpetrators' trail knowingly ends at Haven Academy and they aren't the type of people to sit around with that knowledge. Since Pyrrha was still alive in this reality, she would have likely joined her team on their journey once she had recovered from her injuries.

Yang is a different story. Sure, I may have prevented Yang from getting her arm chopped off by Adam. But it does not mean she isn't still traumatized by other events in the Battle of Beacon. The very fact that Blake still left her didn't really help matters. So I don't know if Yang had actually joined Ruby on her journey or stayed behind initially due to her depression and PTSD. But I have faith in that she will be able get through her personal issues sooner than later and her father is there to help her out.

Speaking of Blake, she should be in Menagerie with Sun and her parents at this point of the timeline. I don't expect too much deviation on her side as what happened to Blake was pretty similar to canon. As for Adam, I don't think I have made any significant changes to his plans despite of my direct interference. I still expect that he would seize control of the White Fang soon and later coordinate the attack on Haven Academy. But I could possibly have worsened his utter 'obsession' with Blake…

Ugh…yet another serious problem to solve later.

I haven't affected the circumstances of Ozpin's death at all, so he should be already been reincarnated into the next host, Oscar. They should be with Ruby and the others now, though I am a bit uneasy about the idea of throwing a mere teenager into the fray. As for Ozpin's secrets…I will also have to do something about that soon.

Cinder and her allies are probably in the midst of planning the fall of Haven Academy, which includes finding the Spring Maiden and retrieving the Relic of Knowledge. The Spring Maiden is certainly a lost cause by now. The current Spring Maiden, Raven, doesn't want to do anything with Ozpin. The headmaster of Haven, Leonardo, was already a traitor and probably already told Salem's lackeys that Raven has the Spring Maiden (according to Qrow's knowledge). But I would make sure the Relic of Knowledge won't fall into enemy hands at least.

Those are the things I know to be likely true…now for the things I am not so certain about.

To be honest, while I was initially excited at being summoned as a Servant, I do have some concerns about the implications of my summoning in Remnant. For one, Heroic Spirits (or Servants in general) were originally never meant to be used for the Holy Grail War. Heroic Spirits were originally supposed to be only summoned and used by the world to protect humanity/world from threats, especially those of alien origins. It is actually very rare for anyone to successfully summon a Servant without the use of a Holy Grail or other similar powers. It is true that I am a bit unusual as a Servant (and my summoning circumstances as well), but I strongly suspect that an outside force of some kind is responsible for my summoning.

But that makes me wonder…what kind of being am I supposed to fight against? Who or what dragged me out of my world? And most importantly… am I the only one here?

* * *

A tingling, warm feeling ran under my skin, causing me to abruptly break from my troubling thoughts. What was that? It felt as though it was coming from the outside...

I curiously peer through the windows again, where the appearance of numerous floating islands outside made me blink in surprise. My attention was then drawn to one of the larger floating islands nearby, where I could see huge black-purple crystals sticking out from the rock formation. Ah, these must be Lake Matsu's floating islands, levitated by raw gravity Dust crystals inside them.

You know, I personally find it funny to know no matter how the show insisted that Dust is not supposed to be Magic, its actual applications make it quite hard to distinguish between the two. After all, there isn't a single, clear scientific explanation of how these Dust crystals were originally formed or how they actually worked in detail. I even joked with Weiss that the origins of Dust were from the souls of dead mages in the past. She wasn't amused with my joke.

But… come to think about it…those floating islands…don't they hide some rather dangerous Grimm…?

Just then, I was slightly jolted around as the airship suddenly swerved sharply to the right. What was that? A moment later, my ears pricked up upon hearing a nearby explosion outside. Then I finally remembered something important in my memories.

_That was an explosion of an airship crashing into one of the islands. It was caused by a Grimm attack. Weiss's airship was going to be chased by those same Grimm._

I immediately burst through to the cockpit to get a better view of the situation. Weiss and the pilot had horrified looks as they looked towards at the direction of the explosion. The pilot then cursed as he immediately switched back to the radio to dial for nearby transmissions.

"Was that an airship that crashed nearby?" I then asked them.

"Yes…but what could have caused that?" Weiss murmured.

"Don't know yet. But I have a bad feeling about this," The pilot grimly voiced out his opinion of the situation.

I then glanced at the right side of the cockpit where my eyes caught something afar. "…You may be right about that feeling."

Weiss and the pilot glanced in the direction of where I was looking at and gaped in response. A huge swarm of Lancers was pursuing a rather-battered Mistral airship. But it wasn't long till the large wasp-like Grimm decided to unleash their deadly harpoons upon their target, leaving it trapped and immobile at their mercy.

A distressed, unidentified female voice then crackled through the ship radio transmitter. "We're hooked! We're hooked!"

I looked at the Mistral airship helplessly as the Lancers started to pull the aircraft apart mercilessly. The wooden hull visibly buckled and groaned under the pressure.

"Everyone, abandon ship!" The female voice cried out in desperation. But it was far too late as one of the Lancers performed a suicidal dive bomb attack from above, causing the airship to explode into pieces. I winced slightly by the apparent deaths of the ship's crew and passengers, and Weiss wasn't doing much better at the sight. But we now had a bigger problem in our hands.

_The Lancers slowly turned around to face us. We were their new target. _

"Lancers, freakin' Lancers!" The pilot hastily scrambled over the controls to accelerate the ship away. I guessed he finally realized the apparent danger we were in now. "Alright, buckle up-Huh?"

But Weiss and I had already jumped down the hatch into the cargo hold. Those Grimm aren't going to give up easily, especially now they have their sights on us.

"What are you guys doing?" the pilot asked over the intercom as we got ready to combat the swarm.

"What we should've done in the first place," Weiss replied adamantly as she picked up her Myrtenaster nearby.

Meanwhile, I had cracked open up one of the large crates with the Schnee logo on it. High-quality powdered Dust vials of every color filled my sight. I immediately grabbed six of the vials and offered them to Weiss.

"Thank you, Gray," Weiss accepted the vials to load up her dust revolver.

"No problem," I said as I summoned out my invisible sword and armor.

"Be ready to open the rear door!" I called out to the pilot.

"Alright, but we're cutting it close!" the pilot yelled out as the ship kept on swerving around.

Weiss summons a black glyph underneath her feet to stabilize her stance, while I take my position somewhere upfront. Our swords were readied for the impending battle.

"Open it now!" I shouted out finally.

The cargo rear door slowly opened up, letting the cold lake air in and I was greeted by the sight of a swarm of very aggressive Lancers. One of Lancers near the front fired its harpoon at me, but I simply grabbed onto it and sharply yanked the opposing Lancer towards me. I immediately slashed it in half when it got into my range, disintegrating it.

_Well, that's one down. Just a few more dozen left to go._

Weiss repeatedly fired out her various Dust projectiles; taking down quite a few Lancers. On the other hand, I kept on slashing and hacking any unfortunate Lancer that came too close to the airship with my sword. But our combined efforts were going a bit too slow for my liking.

_Time to take things up a notch._

"Weiss, Flamethrower!" I shouted out as I redirected a small portion on my prana into Invisible Air. The condensed column of air swirled rapidly around my sword before I finally released it with a cry.

"**Strike Air!" **

A medium-sized stream of wind burst out and roared towards the approaching swarm. But that was just the beginning of their doom.

In the meanwhile, Weiss had affirmed my command as she ran her fingers down against the blade and a large fiery red Schnee glyph formed nearby. She then pointed her weapon and shot out a large fireball at the wind stream itself.

The fireball instantly ignited the wind…

…and huge firestorm collided with the swarm.

_It was super effective._ Scorched Grimm bits came raining down into the lake from the aftermath.

"Ha-ha! Nice one!" the pilot complimented us after seeing the severe damage done to the swarm.

Indeed, I was quite satisfied with actual damage that we did with our technique in real combat. This particular technique was just one of many combination attacks that Weiss and I practiced together during our training. We weren't just practicing hitting sticks against together.

But still it wasn't quite enough for these persistent buggers. There were still a few Lancers that managed to avoid it and quickly close in the distance between us.

The cargo ship suddenly rocked a bit.

"We're hooked!" the pilot exclaimed as the remaining swarm slowly surrounded us.

"We need to get our stowaways off this ship!" I cried out to the pilot as I deflected another harpoon shot at the airship.

"…I got an idea! Hold on!" the pilot answered back. "…Literally!"

Weiss and I immediately braced ourselves onto the ship as the pilot implemented his reckless yet effective idea.

The airship headed straight for one of the larger islands as the swarm buzzed after us. I could literally feel its gravity pulling on us as we got ever so closer. Then the pilot dived down in the last possible moment before we crashed, where the island's strong gravity pull tore off the hooked Lancers from the airship.

"Ha-ha!" the pilot cheered upon his success. What a crazy guy. But I do like his style.

Seeing the apparent success of the pilot, Weiss had an idea in mind. "Can you find a pair of islands we can fit between?"

"Kid, you are reading my mind!" the pilot replied after figuring out Weiss's idea.

The cargo airship soared toward a narrow passageway between the chosen two islands, where it trembled from the pressure of gravity between them. But we were mostly fine, thanks to our powerful engine thrusters and experienced pilot. The remaining Lancers, on the other hand, were crashing left and right as they were unable to resist the gravity pull.

Weiss helped out by shooting out a few well-placed lightning Dust projectiles on the upper cliff side. The result? A bunch of rubble fell down and crushed the remaining Lancers on our tail.

The airship finally rushed out of the ravine with a few scratches and dirt trailing behind us. But we were okay.

"Yeah! Great going, guys! We are in the clear!" the pilot celebrated aloud.

Weiss almost sighed in relief, but then I spoke out solemnly. "We are not out of woods, yet."

"What do you mean?!" the pilot asked over the intercom. Weiss also looked at me questioningly.

"A Queen Lancer," I answered grimly as the mentioned creature suddenly appeared behind the airship.

The Queen Lancer was many times the size of an ordinary Lancer. It was about the size of our airship with a notable larger abdomen and a long curved harpoon. Large overlapping armor plates covered its backside and it was deceptively fast for its large size; judging from how it is keeping up with our airship speed. This was not going to be easy.

"What?!" the pilot panicked upon hearing the said Grimm's appearance.

"We will take care it, work on getting us to the shoreline quickly!" I ordered the pilot.

Then the Queen Lancer opened its armor cavities and fired off its numerous bony projectiles right at us. I immediately leaped and twirled through the air with extreme speed and dexterity as I repelled the projectiles with my blade. I finally somersaulted on top of the airship with a slight frown on my face.

Destroying the Queen Lancer by myself is not really an option for me here. I would be risking leaving the airship defenseless against its attacks as I have to jump out to fight in close combat. Not to mention, it would be a tad difficult for me to get back into the airship. Invisible Air may be a viable option here, but I have a much better idea in mind.

"Weiss! Call out your summon now!" I called to her from above.

Weiss looked up at me in confusion before finally realizing my intentions. "…Right!"

As Weiss focused on her summoning, I solely worked on defending the airship from the Queen Lancer's attacks and buying Weiss some time.

Fortunately, Weiss didn't need a lot of time to summon, unlike in the canon. Her Arma Gigas had formed instantly, ready to charge into battle.

"Pull up now!" I yelled out to the pilot immediately after confirming her success.

Weiss and I braced onto the ship as it swerved sharply upside down. Then the white Arma Gigas ran outside and dived down right at the Queen Lancer. Its heavy broadsword materialized into its hand.

When it looked like they were about to collide with each other, the Arma Gigas abruptly disappeared, only to reappear behind the Queen Lancer. It then initiated a series of heavy slashes onto the Queen Lancer. However, the Queen Lancer had managed to fire off its harpoon in midst of the attacks.

The fired harpoon was heading straight towards our airship. The airship would have crashed from a heavy hit like that. But luckily, I was waiting for that moment.

"Ya!" I swung my sword at the approaching harpoon and managed to deflect it away in time. Just moments later, I saw the Arma Gigas give the final death blow to the Queen Lancer, where both figures dissipated soon afterwards.

We finally made it.

* * *

I deftly slip myself back down into the airship's cargo hold where the rear door was now closing up. Weiss was looked a little worn down, but had a smile on her face from our success.

From my initial assessment, we have done much better than I thought we would have. We didn't suffer a lot of damage from the fight and the airship didn't crash in the end. Weiss had managed to get another strong summon. We even saved our pilot's cargo. All in all, we did pretty good back there.

"Alright! We finally made it! Thanks for your help back there! Thought we were goners for sure!" the pilot cheered up again as we finally crossed the shoreline safely.

"There is no need to thank us. Just fly us to Mistral in one piece," I answered humbly as I checked up on Weiss. She doesn't seem to be hurt from the ordeal, but she definitely deserves some rest after this battle.

Now I think about it, I don't believe Weiss has gotten much sleep since we got out of Atlas…

"Weiss, try to get some sleep for now. I will wake you when we get there," I said firmly to her while dismissing my armor.

"What? Gray, I'm not that tired," Weiss objected. But her haggard eyes and unsteady footing told me a different story. She seriously needed some rest.

"It is essential for warriors to rest after battle is over. You will need it more than I ever would. I will watch over you in the meantime," I firmly stood by my point.

"B-but…I'm really fine," Weiss stubbornly asserted.

I could have waited till Weiss gave up at some point, but I decided to do something rather… drastic. I firmly grabbed onto her hand and hooked my foot around her ankle at the same time. Weiss yelped in surprise as she abruptly lost her footing when I pulled her towards me. But I caught her just in time and smoothly placed her head right onto my lap.

"G-gray, what are you doing…!?" Weiss stuttered out while being red down to her neck.

"Calm down, I'm merely giving you a place to rest your head on," I told her gently as I stroked her surprisingly soft hair. "And can't you just let me indulge on this for once?"

"…Idiot." Weiss quietly murmured as she finally gave up her struggling despite of her apparent embarrassment at her position. I only lightly chuckled at her response as my stroking hand started to work its magic on her.

Eventually, Weiss's eyes started to droop and her breathing grew even as I continued to stroke her head in a steady, rhythmic fashion. It wasn't long till Weiss finally slipped away into her dreams and her head closely nuzzling my lap. I stare upon her sleeping form with a feeling of mixed amusement and concern; the soft sound of her breath felt comforting in the midst of the humming airship engines.

_Geez, what a troublesome Master I have. But I wouldn't trade her for any other Master._

* * *

**So we have begun the Haven Arc with the airship chase over Lake Matsu. Weiss and Gray have made it out safely without too much trouble and ended up in a better position than canon Weiss. It is not a very long chapter, but it gets the plot going at least.**

**I also like to thank you readers for your ideas from the last chapter reviews and hopefully I can make this work out. And your continued support is always greatly appreciated.**

**A side note: The upcoming RWBY fanfic will be focused on Qrow Branwen, though with a few changes…**

**As always, please favorite and follow this story if you haven't already. Thank you for reading.**


	24. Ch 18: Reunion With Friends

**I don't own the RWBY or Fate Universes. It is a late update, but here it is!**

* * *

**Chapter Eighteen: Reunion With Friends**

* * *

_Weiss opened her eyes to find herself in the midst of knights._

The knights were gathered in a large chamber with cobbled stone walls and vibrant blue and golden tapestries. Dominating the majority of the chamber was an enormous round wooden table with a distinct cross emblem in the middle; about a dozen of the knights have taken their seats around it. Weiss had already recognized this place due to her previous dreams.

_The Round Table. It was the foundation of Kingdom of Camelot and a famed symbol of chivalry. This was the primary place that King Arthur and his knights were able to gather together as equals._

Yet the atmosphere in the room seemed to be more somber and tenser than Weiss had last remembered. Though some of the knights were naturally serious in demeanor, there were certainly others who were more at ease. But this time, none of the knights in the room had revealed any positive expressions on their faces. What was happening right now?

Her eyes finally caught sight of Artoria standing in front of one of the seats. She was in her normal blue dress and silver armor, yet also wore a majestic royal blue cloak that further accentuated her sovereign authority. Her ageless and boyish appearance along her current stoic face made it surprisingly difficult to discern her true gender. Weiss slowly made her way over to Artoria's side as she observed the memory proceedings.

The main focus of this gathering seemed to be on one of the knights sitting at the table. Weiss had recognized him from her previous dreams as one of Artoria's more prominent knights. He had rich red hair like Pyrrha, yet it was darker in shade. His eyes were seemingly closed as if though he was asleep. Yet it was his melancholy temperament along with his innate beauty that made him stood out of the rest of the knights in appearance.

_Tristan, the peerless master of the bow and one of the Knights of the Round Table. The Knight of Lamentation._

Artoria suddenly spoke out, quieting the random chatter between the knights. "Sir Tristan, do you truly desire this?"

"Yes, Your Majesty. I reaffirm my decision. I wish to withdraw from the Round Table." Tristan answered in a melodic voice. The other knights visibly shifted uneasily at his statement. Weiss also looked at Tristan with some surprise. Why would a prominent knight like him leave the Round Table? Unless he had some kind of hidden grievance with Artoria…

"…Very well. If this is your decision, then I will not hold you back. May you live the rest of your days in peace." Artoria finally answered in a passive voice.

Tristan nodded acknowledgingly before he stood up and made his way towards the exit. Weiss glanced worriedly at Artoria, but the king did not have any visible signs of emotion at one of her knight's departure.

However, one of the other sitting knights did not especially look happy about Tristan's departure. He was a tall and muscular man with faded blonde hair and aqua-colored eyes. He wore shining white armor and had a presence akin to a bright sun. That knight abruptly stood up; drawing the attention of his fellow knights. "Halt, Sir Tristan. I would wish to hear the reasoning of why you are leaving the Round Table."

"Gawain, that's enough. Let him leave in peace." Artoria warned the knight.

However, Gawain seemed too incensed to normally listen to his king right now. "Why would you refuse to serve our king now? Has our king done anything wrong to you? What possible flaw do you see in our king?"

"Sir Gawain, stand down!" Artoria reprimanded him again.

_But it was too late._

Tristan had already paused in his steps upon hearing Gawain's questions. Weiss couldn't see the knight's face, but his fists were visibly clenched and trembled. Then a sorrowful remark left him in a murmur.

_ "-The king does not understand the hearts of men." _

Tristan then finally left the room, leaving those few words lingering in the air.

Nearly at once, everyone reacted to those words with varying degrees. Some of the knights looked quite angered by the fact that their 'perfect' king had been insulted like this. And there were others who had doubtful expressions of whether his words were truly wrong about their king. But there was one person who didn't change their expression towards Tristan's words.

While her knights were in visible turmoil at their former comrade's words, Artoria stood alone silently with an unreadable expression on her face. Her green eyes stared at the seat that Tristan once occupied before closing her eyes in mere acceptance. As if she had already known the fact that this would have happened to her as king…

Weiss was struck with realization of why she was so drawn to Artoria's presence.

_While the others may only praise her or condemn her for being the perfect king with no human desires or flaws…Weiss instead saw a lonely king._

* * *

Weiss slowly stirred. A hazy figure with blonde hair and green eyes appeared in her bleary vision. She blinked in confusion.

_Artoria?_

Yet her eyesight soon cleared up and she found herself staring at Gray instead. Then Weiss finally remembered where she was at the moment.

"How was your rest, Weiss?" Gray asked her quietly.

"It…was fine." Weiss admitted shyly. Yet she will never confess that his lap was quite comfortable…

"But your ears are turning quite red… are you getting airsick?" Gray noted worriedly as his head leaned down closer to her own… Too close!

"I-it's nothing!" Weiss yelped as she immediately sprung up to put some distance between them. That was way too close for her heart…

Gray looked at her in confusion. "Did I do something wrong?"

Weiss thankfully managed to gather her wits together in time. "N-no, I just had one of those… um…dreams."

"Ah…" Gray thankfully accepted her reason. "May I ask what your dream was this time?"

Weiss hesitated a moment before she answered. "I dreamt about how a knight named Tristan left the Round Table."

Gray's expression immediately turned somber at the knight's name. "Oh…I can see why you were troubled by such a scene."

Weiss nodded before grimacing in thought. "Were…were his words true about Artoria?"

Gray slowly shook his head to her relief. "Artoria may be cold and unapproachable as a king to those who did not know her well. But she was still human, even if she had trouble showing her emotions."

"Then why did he say those words to her?" Weiss questioned.

Gray sighed heavily. "Tristan was a knight with a troubled past and tragic love. He may have said those words, but it was definitely not out of spite. As for the exact reason, I don't really know. Perhaps he couldn't bear looking at the king who had her emotions buried away. What I know is that he did regret his words later, but the damage was already done. However…in a certain way, it was necessary for Artoria."

Weiss whirled around to face Gray with disbelief and anger. "N-necessary?! What part of those words was necessary? It did nothing but to hurt her in the end!"

Gray slowly nodded in agreement. "I am not saying those words weren't wrong or hurtful. But you have to understand Artoria's life wasn't exactly normal. Artoria strictly kept to the oath that a king is not human and one cannot protect the people with human emotions. In the process, she became the perfect king by burying her emotions. She only lived for her people and was only happy when her kingdom prospered. Very few understood her inner sentiments, yet she still stood alone with that burden. Do you believe she was happy as a person?"

Weiss slightly faltered at his words. She distinctly remembered her first dream about Artoria; how she was more than willing to sacrifice her own happiness for the kingdom…and her eventual fate in the end.

_How she stood regretfully alone in the battlefield as her kingdom lay in ruins._

Gray rested his head against the wall with a wistful look. "Had _he_ not saved her, I wonder if she would have ever found her own happiness in the end?"

Weiss gave a strange look at Gray. "What do you mean someone saved her? I thought you said that she had died in the end."

A strange knowing smile formed on Gray's face. "Well, there is another story to her tale. And when did I say she had died without finding her own happiness?"

Just then, the pilot's voice suddenly crackled through the ship's intercom; interrupting their conversation. "Hey, if you two aren't busy down there, then do you mind coming up to the cockpit?"

Gray slowly got up onto his feet. "We can talk about this later, Weiss."

Weiss nodded reluctantly as she followed Gray up to the cockpit. When they entered, the pilot was humming a soft tune as they appeared to flying through white clouds."Is there something that we should be worried about?" Weiss asked the pilot as she sat on the co-pilot seat.

The pilot just gave her a grin. "No, it is nothing like that. But I would like to announce that we have just arrived at our destination and the view of capital city is quite spectacular from the air." Weiss looked at him strangely till their aircraft finally broke through the low-lying clouds. Then they saw the city itself.

"…Wow." Weiss gasped in apparent awe.

"Indeed, it is quite a sight." Gray agreed.

Mistral was quite majestic for a city; humbling even. While Mistral lacked the technological and modern feeling of Atlas, its essence held a much deeper history and color to it. Surrounded by the lush green mountains, the capital city stood proudly like a temple for the gods. From its simple and worn buildings at the bottom to its elaborate and vibrant buildings near the top, the city looked as if it was carved into its twin mountainsides. And sitting right at the very top of its twin cliff peaks was Haven Academy; the crowning symbol of safety and strength throughout the Mistral Kingdom.

"Welcome to Mistral." the pilot announced as the airship slowly descended towards the city.

* * *

When Weiss decided to go to Mistral to reunite with her friends, she did have a plan in trying to track them down by visiting Haven Academy. Since Haven Academy was the most distinguished huntsman academy in Mistral, she figured that they would have at least visited there. If not, she was confident that the academy would be accommodating enough to keep an eye out for her friends.

Unfortunately, Weiss had experienced none of that when she first arrived at the Haven Academy's doors.

"Closed?! What do you mean the academy is closed right now?" Weiss questioned in disbelief.

The academy receptionist snorted sharply at Weiss's incredulity. "You heard me, miss. Haven Academy is not accepting any visitors, according to the headmaster's orders."

Weiss tried to contend. "Well, I am a huntress-in-training and I need to enter the premises to…"

The academy receptionist abruptly cut her off. "It is still not possible. All students are to be sent away home regardless. If you have left something back in the school grounds, you need to send in proper documentation at least two weeks prior…"

Weiss's thoughts were in disarray as she drowned out the rest of the receptionist's monologue. How could the headmaster close the academy at a time like this? She had figured she could somehow find Ruby and others with the academy as a valid starting point. But Weiss didn't think _bureaucracy_ of all things would stop her here.

"…then please contact one of other academies." The academy receptionist pushed her black-rimmed glasses up as she finished her monologue. "Now if you have nothing else, I suggest that you should go home right now."

Seeing that further argumentation was pointless, Weiss turned around with an unwilling expression. Her heels clacked sharply against the stone steps as she slowly made her way down in a forlorn mood. Weiss caught sight of Gray waiting for her at the bottom of the steps as he was currently engrossed with another book in his hands. She immediately plopped down right next to him and rested her head tiredly in her hands.

"Judging from your expression, I assume that we cannot enter the academy?" Gray slowly asked as he turned his eyes towards her.

Weiss gave a short nod in confirmation. "…I swear the Haven headmaster is not in his right head. I mean, who would close off Haven Academy at a time like this?!"

Gray promptly shut his book in a clap. "That is quite concerning…I didn't expect the academy to be closed off to visitors right now…"

Weiss heaved a sigh before glancing up at Gray. "Well, there goes my plan in finding Ruby and the others. Do you perhaps have any other ideas to suggest?"

Gray pondered for a moment before he slowly voiced his thoughts. "…Say, Weiss. Don't you happen to have Ruby's number on your scroll? The CCT network may be down, but local communications should still work around here."

"…" Weiss mentally berated herself for not thinking of that idea sooner. She whipped out her scroll from her pocket and quickly tapped on the screen several times before finally selecting Ruby's contact number. Her heart pounded as she nervously waited for the call to go through.

_Please connect, please connect…_

Just then, a familiar voice came through the speaker. "W-weiss…?"

Weiss's voice had hitched for a second before she managed to reply back. "Ruby, it's me…"

"Weiss! It is really you! How-how are you calling me?! I thought CCT was still down?!" Ruby asked fervently.

Weiss tearfully wiped her eyes as she was finally speaking with her partner again. "Well, it wasn't easy getting out of Atlas, you know."

Ruby chirped excitingly. "You're here?! You mean here-here right?!"

Weiss rolled her eyes before she smirked. "Yes, I am in Mistral. But do you know where we can meet up? I'm currently at the entrance of Haven Academy and …"

"Haven Academy? ThenIwillseeyousoonbye!" Ruby babbled excitedly before the connection was abruptly cut off.

Weiss stare at her scroll blankly. "Ruby? Ruby!?" She turned her head towards Gray…who was now several feet away from her.

"Gray?"

"Yes, Weiss?"

"Why are distancing yourself from me?" Weiss asked dryly.

Gray whistled innocently as he turned his head towards a certain direction. "Well, it is because I don't want to get in-between your 'reunion' soon."

Weiss looked at Gray with confusion till she thought she heard her name. Scratch that, _someone _was definitely calling her name. And something _red _was heading towards at her at extreme speeds…

"WWWWWWWWWWWWEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIISSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!"

"Gah!" Weiss felt her whole world spin around several times over as a storm of rose petals collided into her figure. She moaned in pain and slight dizziness as she thankfully landed on the soft grass… with 'someone' sitting right on top of her.

_And that 'someone' had to be her partner, Ruby Rose._

"Weiss! I found you!" Ruby cried out in high spirits. "Are you happy to see me?! Are you?!"

"Ruby." Weiss managed to say calmly.

Ruby tilted her head down. "Yes, Weiss?"

"G-get off me, you dolt!" Weiss shouted out discomfortingly at her position.

"Oh, oops! Sorry!" Ruby nervously giggles as she quickly jumps away from Weiss. "But I missed you!"

Weiss brushed herself off before a smile appeared on her face. "And I am glad to see you too, Ruby. But did you have to meet us like this? Where are the others?"

"Well, I was close by…and the others are currently at the house right now." Ruby replied sheepishly while scratching behind her head.

Weiss sighed at her partner. "Listen Ruby, I got over here to help you and others out with Gray and…"

"Who?" Ruby interrupted her before she finally noticed Gray standing nearby.

Gray smiled at Ruby. "Hello, there. You must be Weiss's partner, Ruby Rose."

Ruby blinks before she puffs out in response. "A-ah? Y-yes, I am Weiss's partner, Ruby! Ruby Rose is my name!"

Gray nods amusingly at her antics. "My name is Gray. Gray Pendragon. It is nice to meet you, Ruby. Weiss has told me many great things about you."

Weiss gave Gray a surprised look. When did she compliment anything about Ruby? Sure, she did talked a bit about her team…

"R-really?" Ruby asked him somewhat shyly.

"Indeed. You are the one and only leader of the Team RWBY, one of the greatest teams of Beacon Academy. Your compassionate and valiant leadership has led your team and others out of dire situations. You have inspired many people where others' strengths would have failed otherwise. I have yet to judge it for myself, but I do believe in her words to be the truth." Gray declared in a rather bold fashion.

Weiss had to blink several times as she failed to comprehend entirety of his words. What…?

Ruby, on the other hand, deeply blushed at Gray's compliments before turning towards her. "Aww, Weiss. Did you really say all of that?"

"W-well…" Weiss couldn't answer properly before Ruby suddenly enveloped her in a hug.

"Heh-heh. I think you are great too, Weiss." Ruby grinned.

Weiss shot a questioning look at Gray, who simply offered her a sly smile. _That idiot… _Weiss heaved a sigh of resignation before she eventually hugged Ruby back. It isn't like she didn't enjoy the hug…

"Ruby, would you mind leading us to where the others are now?" Weiss asked after she finally pulled away from the hug.

"Of course, I don't mind! I bet the others would want to meet you now, Weiss! Yang is there, too!" Ruby answered excitingly as she insistently tugged Weiss's arm. "You wouldn't believe what happened to us so far!"

"…I am sure I wouldn't be that surprised after all that has happened to me though." Weiss muttered under her breath. She then shot a last look back at Gray before letting Ruby pull her to wherever she was taking her.

_Weiss pointedly ignored the chuckles behind her as Ruby led them down the stone steps._

* * *

I quietly chuckled to myself as I trailed behind the two girls, who were chatting amicably. We were currently traversing the streets of Mistral as we followed Ruby's direction to the safehouse. I admit that Ruby's sudden entrance was a surprise, but not unwelcomed. That look of realization on Weiss's face was quite priceless.

From what I can tell, Ruby hasn't changed much from her enthusiastic and adorkable character from the last time I've seen her. Though…I was a little concerned about the burden she was carrying. I wasn't lying about the words that I spoke about her. She may or may not realize it, but she has a positive impact on the people around her. I seriously doubt that the group could have survived long without her influence.

But it is good to see that Ruby and Weiss are close friends now. It's a far cry from when they had initially met in Beacon Academy. Weiss is a good person in heart, but she isn't exactly the most approachable of all people. It was a wonder how a socially awkward person like Ruby had managed to befriend someone like Weiss.

I turned my attention to the city surroundings. The market streets were expectantly full of large crowds of people going about their day. A tired-looking mother had just walked passed me with a wicket basket in one hand and her small daughter in the other. A short, fat fruit vendor was currently haggling with a blond young girl over a bag of oranges. I even caught a glimpse of an old, bearded man currently resting in a small alley with a straw hat covering his eyes. It's certainly something.

Yet…something wasn't quite right about the city. Even though I'm not a Grimm, I could sense a shadow of unease blanketing the city. It wasn't quite outright fear that would definitely draw in the Grimm, but rather it was a perception that something ominous was coming to Haven.

That tired-looking mother was tugging along her child along more closely to her than it seemed necessary as if she was afraid of losing her child. The fruit merchant was sharply whispering to the young girl as if he was secretly warning her of some sort of danger. And the old man who was supposedly sitting by himself? I caught the glint of a small hidden blade under his right sleeve and he was sitting in a way that one could respond to an attack effectively.

I frowned slightly as I processed the various signs of unease around me. Was the situation in Mistral this bad? Or was something else afoot? It appears I have some things to investigate later. Maybe Ruby and others had a better idea of what was going on in the city.

We eventually exited the busy market streets where we climbed up a narrow stone stairway that led us up to a fairly large three-story wooden house on top of a plateau. It was a nice place that was fairly high up in the city and somewhat isolated from prying eyes.

Ruby hummed to herself as she knocked on the front door three times. It was a few seconds later till the door slowly opened itself up and a familiar blonde head peeked outside.

"Ruby, is that you? What took you so long…?" Yang's voice trailed off as her lilac eyes slightly widened at the sight of Weiss. Weiss looked back at her with a nervous yet small smile.

"…Weiss?" Yang spoke out in astonishment. Weiss nodded tearfully before she immediately rushed in and wrapped her arms around Yang. Though surprised by her actions, Yang forms a genuine smile on her face as she returned the hug back in full. It wasn't long till her sister Ruby had eagerly joined in a moment later.

"Welcome back, Weiss." Yang whispered emotionally.

_I waited quietly on the side as the three girls tearfully embraced each other in their long-awaited reunion. They deserved this moment._

* * *

When we had arrived at the house, the others were preparing dinner for the group that Qrow and Oscar was supposed to bring back. They hadn't arrived back yet, though I heard that they were coming back before dusk. The group unanimously decided to have dinner anyways to celebrate Weiss's reunion with her friends.

I bit into my soft-boiled egg as I quietly listened into the conversations between the others. The current atmosphere at the dinner table was quite cheerful with currently present members of Team RWBY and Team JNPR talking animatedly with each other.

Most of them didn't look that much different from their canon counterparts except for a few minor details. For example, Jaune didn't have the red sash around his waist, Yang lacked a prosthetic arm and Ruby's cloak showed greater wear and tear than I remembered. Pyrrha, who was still alive at this point, was the eye-opener. She had more additions to her armor including golden spaulders and twin vambraces. Her skirt sported decorative bronze tassels and an extra leather belt pouch. Her fiery red hair that was normally in a ponytail was let loose as a cascade of crimson behind her back.

While I observed the others' appearances with subtle interest, everyone else was studying Weiss herself quite intriguingly.

"Weiss, you seem so… different." Ruby wondered.

"What do you mean? Haven't we all grown up in our own ways?" Weiss questioned her.

Ruby waved her hands in front of her in awkwardness. "No, no! I mean you look more like an actual veteran huntress! Not that you weren't one! You just have that sort of feeling…"

"I believe what Ruby was trying to say is that you have well, matured greatly." Ren clarified. Ruby nodded rapidly in agreement.

"You also seemed to be training a lot while you were away." Pyrrha observed. "And I see that you have decided to take up some armor as part of your battle attire now." She then grinned in anticipation. "I would like it if we can spar with each other soon."

Weiss's smile turned listless as if she just remembered something unpleasant. "I guess you could say that I had been training harder than most…"

"Um, Weiss?" Ruby asked worriedly. "Is something wrong?"

"It's nothing; just remembering the days I would rather forget," Weiss replied dismissively after refocusing on the conversation. "Anyways, I agree that I may have made significant strides in myself. But it wasn't without any help."

"Who helped you out?" Jaune questioned.

Weiss smiles mysteriously. "Oh, just a certain person that I met."

"Oh, did Ice Queen get her heart finally melted?" Yang teased her.

"W…hat?! No!" Weiss denied strongly. Ruby bursts into laughter at Yang's remark.

"But you are blushing." Nora pointed out obviously. Hmm…she isn't wrong. Weiss's face was redder than any fire Dust I've seen. Then Nora gasps in realization. "Who went and warmed your heart while you were gone?"

Weiss buried her face into her hands. "I so did not miss you people." Everyone else simply laughed at her expense while I settled for a smirk.

* * *

But it wasn't long though before the focus of the conversation shifted towards me.

Yang offered me a friendly wink. "So...do you mind telling us your name? I'm Yang, if you haven't known that yet."

"I'm Jaune." Jaune introduces himself next.

Pyrrha waves her hand at me in a friendly manner. "Pyrrha, Pyrrha Nikos."

"I'm Nora!" Nora proclaimed. "And this is Ren!"

Ren politely greets me. "Hello."

I smiled back. "You can call me Gray. It is nice to meet you all."

"So, are you a huntsman?" Jaune asked curiously.

I shook my head. "No, I am not a huntsman like you guys. But I do know how to fight pretty well."

"Ooh-ooh! Then you must have cool weapons?!" Ruby joined in as her silver eyes shone excitingly. Yang rolled her eyes at her sister's antics with a small smile.

I chuckled lightly. "Yes, but I prefer not to show my weapon off if I can."

"Aww…I want to see it though…" Ruby whined in disappointment.

Yang then decided to cut into the conversation. "I am more curious to know why you were with Weiss in the first place."

I adopted a thoughtful look. "…You want to know about my relationship with Weiss?"

Yang nodded. "Yeah, I could ask Weiss here, but I have a feeling she wouldn't give me a straight answer here."

Weiss raised her brow. "You know that I am here, right?"

Yang sticks out her tongue playfully. "It doesn't mean I'm wrong. So do you mind telling us, hot stuff?"

I hummed for a few moments before I answered. "Well, the answer is simpler than you might think. Weiss trusts me."

A pregnant silence filled the dinner table. Weiss's face blushed at my statement.

"It is because she trusts you?" Pyrrha asked me curiously.

I nodded. "Weiss would have never brought me along if she didn't trust me in the first place. She considers all of you as her closest friends and wouldn't try to endanger you all. At the same time, I place my own trust in her that she would have my back. I can't exactly explain how we got to this point, but know that we trust each other greatly."

Yang glanced at both Weiss and I before she eventually smiles knowingly. "I may not understand why she trusts you. But I know Weiss isn't the type of person who trusts anyone readily without good reason. You two must be pretty close."

I smiled graciously at Yang. "Yes, you could say that we are pretty close. Though if you want know more about me, I suggest we all talk it after dinner. After all, the world isn't quite the same anymore."

The atmosphere suddenly turned somber from my words. Ren looks down as his tea in a contemplated mood, while Nora glances at him with worry. Ruby has a visible pained look on her face, while Yang slowly clenches her fist tightly. Weiss simply closes her eyes in thought.

"Yeah…" Jaune agreed in a sad manner. Pyrrha places her hand on Jaune's shoulder comfortingly and gives him a reassuring smile.

"But isn't it true that many of you have changed as well? I don't know if it is for the better or worse, but all of you have grown up in some different form or shape from your past selves." I added. "The real question is, are you proud to become the person that you are today?"

The others looked at each other unsure.

"Well, I wouldn't have known how to swing a sword correctly without Pyrrha here." Jaune admitted aloud. Pyrrha positively beamed in response to his statement.

"And I do know that I can count on my friends, though I can still be a bit reckless…" Ruby added sheepishly. Weiss gently placed her hand over Ruby's, while Yang ruffles her sister's hair with affection.

I offered them a comforting smile. "While you may still struggle with this question, it is undeniable that you could have only made it this far with your earnest efforts…and friends. Don't you all agree?"

This time, I received unanimous agreement from the group. "Now with that subject out of the way, could one of you please pass down the pot? I could use a few more bowls of noodles."

* * *

_Slurp. Munch. Munch. Munch. Gulp. Slurp. Munch. Munch. Munch. Gulp._

I sighed in utter bliss as I finished up my twentieth bowl of noodles that Ruby and others had prepared for dinner. By now, everyone else's jaws had dropped as they observed my eating prowess. On the other hand, Weiss didn't blink an eye on it as she sipped on some green tea.

Jaune stared at me flabbergasted. "I-I didn't think there would be anyone that could possibly out-eat Nora. Did you, Ren?"

Ren had a more subtle look of surprise on his face. "No."

Nora, on the other hand, had competitive flames in her teal eyes as she slurped down her noodles at an increased rate. Yet she is certainly going to get bloated from rushing her meal…

To be fair, most huntsmen do have much larger appetites than civilians as they burn more calories due to their intensive regiment and Aura. However, since Servants don't have a need to eat, they don't get the sense of fullness as the food is converted into magical energy. So Nora has a definite disadvantage here.

It wasn't long till the conversation paused as Jaune and Pyrrha started to pick up the empty dishes together.

"Gyah…We ate it all… Oh, I'm think I am going to be sick…" Jaune groaned as he picks up the pot holding all of the bowls.

"Easy there, Vomit Boy, I believe in you." Yang joked.

"Oh, we're doing nickname throwbacks now. Wonderful." Jaune sarcastically answered as he walked away with the dishware. Pyrrha giggles as she followed behind Jaune to help him out with the dishes. Hmm…those two seem a lot closer than I expected. Are they a thing now?

Yang then interrupted my thoughts. "Say, didn't you say you knew how to fight?"

"Yes. I am especially confident in my strength if you are asking." I replied casually.

"Oh? You want to bet?" Yang placed her right arm on the table daringly. I intriguingly raised my brow at the rather sudden challenge…but this could be fun.

Weiss sighed at her teammate's actions. "Please Yang, now's not the time…"

I nodded. "Sure, why not?"

Weiss turned at me in utter disbelief. "Gray?!"

I shrugged my shoulders helplessly. "Well, I was told that I am quite competitive. I could never turn down a challenge, especially with my pride at stake."

"Alright, then! Let the games begin!" Nora announced excitingly.

I placed my own elbow on the dinner table and slowly wrapped my hand around hers. Yang had quite a firm grip; testifying her great strength. Then I felt Weiss's hand touch my shoulder.

_"Gray. Don't try to overdo it, okay?"_

I glanced up to see Weiss bit her lip with concern. _"Don't worry, I won't hurt her."_ I mentally assured her. Weiss sighed before she let go of her grip on my shoulder.

Then Yang and I started our match. Our hands shook as we tested each other's strengths. Surprisingly, Yang was much stronger than I had initially expected. She was still nowhere near my real level of strength, but she was definitely outstrips most magi in terms of raw strength, according to Saber's memories.

"C'mon, sis! Don't let him beat you!" Ruby cheered on for her sister. The rest of the group also cheered on for Yang. Weiss opted to quietly observe the scene.

"Oh? It looks like you aren't just made of hot air…" Yang joked as her arm strained against my own.

"You, too. But I won't lose." I replied with some determination.

Yang gave me a toothy grin. "Oh, yeah? Well, I won't make it easy for you, then!"

The table trembled as both of us gradually increased our arm strength as we tried to dominate over the other. Then...I think it somehow got out of hand at some point. From what Weiss had told me later, both of us started to glow as we unconsciously started to channel our respective energy reserves to further increase our strength. Our elbows suddenly dug deeper into the dinner table, forming splinters into the wooden tabletop. And it wasn't long till…

_Crraaaackkkkkkk!_

The entirety of the wooden table immediately burst into pieces as the immense pressure from our bout proved too much for it. Yang and I blinked simultaneously as we were left holding hands without a table for support. Weiss just shook her head incredulously at the result.

"Damn!" Yang cursed at the abrupt ending of our match.

"So…who won?" Nora asked confusingly.

"I think…it was a draw." Ren slowly concluded.

"You aren't too bad, hot stuff." Yang said. "But I'm still bummed out that the table couldn't handle it."

"Indeed," I replied. "Although it was quite a _yang_ in the end."

Everyone bewilderingly looked at me before Yang then suddenly bursts into laughter while everyone else's face twitched at my pun.

"That's a good one!" Yang chuckled as she slapped my back in good humor. She then smiled teasingly at Weiss. "How did you seriously reel in a guy like him, Weiss?"

Weiss hissed back in embarrassment. "Yang! I-it's nothing like that!"

Yang rolled her eyes. "Sure, sure."

I smiled as Weiss grumbled something incoherent under her breath. I never thought I would have so much fun like this. It has been a while since I…

Someone then interrupted us with an annoyed tone. "How can you kids possibly make so much noise eating dinner?!"

I twisted my head around to spot a lanky man with dark spiky hair and red eyes. Qrow Branwen looked quite unamused at us with his arms crossed. The short, tanned teenager standing next to him must be Oscar Pine, who instead gives a small chuckle at our antics. Jaune and Pyrrha were also present as they unsuccessfully attempted to cover their amused grins.

Qrow's eyes then focused onto the destroyed table remnants. "Did the table do something to you?" he asked dryly.

Yang could only laugh sheepishly. "Ha-ha…oops."

Qrow stares for a bit before heaving a heavy sigh. "You know what? I'm not going to ask about that. But it seems that the number of brats here has somehow gone up when I last checked."

His dull-red eyes then narrowed onto me specifically. "I do know about mini-Ice Queen here, but you are certainly a new face around here. Who are you?"

_I smiled as I introduced myself. "My name is Gray Pendragon. It's a pleasure to meet you."_

* * *

**Sorry for the late update. I was struggling a lot with the multi-character dialogue and transitions in this chapter. I still think I could do a lot better job, but it is a new chapter.**

**As for my other upcoming story release, it is going to be delayed (probably by another week or so). I want to do some heavy editing on the first chapter and refine my future storyline plot a bit first.**

**As always, thanks for your patience. Please follow and favorite me if you can!**


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